BOSTON (WHDH) — The annual Best Buddies Challenge is next week and 7News spoke with founder Anthony Shriver about his inspiration for starting the organization.

The mission behind Best Buddies is creating friendships and employment opportunities for people living with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The cause is very personal for Shriver. His aunt, Rosemary Kennedy, lived with intellectual disabilities and inspired his mother, Eunice, to start the Special Olympics in 1968.