The end of November and December came with lots to be thankful for, holiday cheer, and leadership development for Best Buddies Indiana. Here is a recap of our holiday activities and the fall ambassador training!

The past two weekends have held lots of excitement for Best Buddies Indiana: the 2017 annual Friendship Ball, and the 2017 Champion of the Year wrap-up, Party with a Purpose. Read on for a recap of each of these exciting events!

Climbing on a fire truck, cleaning light bars from emergency vehicles, taking photos of commercial cooking stoves, chatting with the Mayor, setting up online auctions, sorting a couple hundred recycled three ring binders, collecting parking ticket fines…these are just some of the tasks Matt Burns may encounter in his job as a clerk with the City of Indianapolis.

The Best Buddies Friendship Walk: Indianapolis took place on Sunday, April 23 at White River State Park, with more than 2000 people in attendance. It was a day filled with the energy of friendship! Participants were greeted by David Quilleon, Senior VP of Global Mission, State Development, and Operations for Best Buddies International

In preparation for April 23rd’s Best Buddies Friendship Walk and 5K competitive run, the BBFW committee hosted a kick-off at the training facility of the Indianapolis Colts. Over 75 people attended representing 8 Middle Schools, 15 High Schools, and 5 Colleges. The morning event helped teams create their own walk fundraising strategies through many activity stations.

Indiana’s Best Buddies Jobs program recently received a Three-Year Accreditation from CARF International which represents the highest level of accreditation that can be given to an organization and shows the organization’s substantial conformance to the CARF standards for a provider of supported employment services.

We are honored to welcome the OrthoIndy Foundation as our presenting friendship walk sponsor. Over 2000 of our friends are expected to join together at Celebration Plaza at White River State Park to walk or run for inclusion. Most will choose to participate in the two-mile fitness walk along the river, but if you’re a runner, be sure to sign up for the timed 5K Run along the Canal.

The Best Buddies 15th Anniversary Gala: A Celebration of Friendship took place on Saturday, March 4 at the Indiana Roof Ballroom. Over 300 guests attended, enjoying silent and live auctions, a raffle of a beautiful diamond ring sponsored by Master Jewelers, dinner, dancing, and a program emceed by Eric Halvorson.

Best Buddies Month is a time for Best Buddies participants to reflect on the importance of friendship, jobs, and the development of future leaders. Most importantly, it is a time to show the world the significance of these essentials in every individual’s life.

In February, several members of the Citizen’s Program met at the ArtMix studios at the Harrison Center for the Arts to participate in a candle decorating project. Led by Jobs Program supervisor and craft aficionado Kim Harvey, fifteen Citizen’s Program Participants donned protective gloves and nurtured their inner Impressionist as they inked over 100 gorgeous candles…