Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84GoodLifeFamilyMag.com SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER 2016 69 It is not easy to put into words what my best buddy Alec, and the Best Buddies mean to me, because my buddyAlectrulyisthelightofmylife.Idonotliketohaveregrets,butoneofmybiggestonesisnotfinding outandbecomingapartoftheBestBuddiesprogramsooner.Ididnotknowsomethingwasmissinginmy life until I joined, and my heart was filled with endless joy and more happiness than I ever thought I could possibly have. My buddy Alec has taught me to live every day to the fullest, love everyone, and be happy with what you have. Every time Alec sees me he yells my name and runs as fast as he can to hug me. No matterwhatmoodIamin,orwhatstressisinmylife,itneverfailstoputmeinagoodmood,andreminds metocountmyblessings.Iwillmisshimtonsincollege,butIknowourfriendshipwilllastforever,thanks to the phenomenal program Best Buddies. Thankful doesn't even begin to cover how I feel to have Alec in my life, and I feel honored to have been able to have something so special as a part of my high school career as I begin the next chapter in my life. - Maddie Karesh Best Buddies’ goal is to create one-to-one friendships for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities to promote inclusion and development. My friendship that was created by this organization has been simply incredible. I was matched with Coleman Jones at the beginning of my junior year of high school, and although, we had known each other since middle school our friendship immediately grew. Having set events and time to spend with one another allowed me to grow close to an amazing man who I will be friends with for the rest of my life. Coleman has taught me so many things from how to walk through my life with exceptional faith to being a man everyone can depend on. - David Wiggs My buddy Coleman Jones was a huge part of my senior year. Coleman is someone you want to be around all the time because of his joy and positivity. He really knows how to make the best out of every situation, and I had a blast hanging out with him. I have learned so much about enjoying the little things in life and just to be joyful in everything I do! Best Buddies is such a great organization because everyone is included and everyone matters. - Sarah Nelson Being a part of Best Buddies absolutely changed my life for the better. I found purpose and friendship, and I learned the true definition of selfless love.Without my buddy Nick, I never would have discovered what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. He has shown me how to find the good in everyone and everything, and there's not a day that goes by that I'm not extremely grateful for the blessing he is in my life. - Ashley Nixon Best Buddies is the world’s largest organization dedicated to ending the social, physical, and economic isolation of the 200 million people with IDD. For individuals within this community, Best Buddies helps them form meaningful friendships with their peers, secure successful jobs, live independently, improve public speaking, self-advocacy and communications skills, and feel valued by society. Learn More at bestbuddies.org Alec and Maddie Coleman and Sarah Coleman and David Nick and Ashley