Best Buddies North Carolina is so excited to announce our first class of Champion of the Year candidates! Through 10 weeks of raising funds and awareness for Best Buddies, our Champions will generate countless opportunities for friendships, jobs, and leadership development for people with IDD.

Sami and Willie are both sixth graders and were matched in October 2018. This was the first year of Best Buddies at Jay M Robinson Middle School. Their friendship strengthened quickly as the two spent a lot of time together at recess, Special Olympics events and during electives.

At their Sorting Hat Match Party, Alli Serdinsky pulled the name of her Peer Buddy from the hat. Alli squealed, “Lizzy!” Both smiling ear to ear, they hugged. That hug was the first of many hugs to come and the beginning of an amazing friendship…

The Best Buddies college chapter at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Chapel Hill, North Carolina was presented with the 2017-2018 Overall Outstanding Chapter Award at Best Buddies International’s 29th Annual Best Buddies Leadership Conference: This Is Me.

Best Buddies brought its first official North Carolina delegation to the 28th Annual Best Buddies Leadership Conference on July 21-24! We had a small, but mighty group of student leaders from the University of North Carolina…

Julianna just graduated from Wake Forest University and is planning to begin her Master’s in Education there this fall. One of the best things about more years at Wake? Continuing her friendship with her best buddy Leeann.

North Carolina hosted its first ever state-sponsored Best Buddies Friendship Walk on May 6. The walk engaged the community in a celebration of friendship, inclusion and the opening of our state office while raising funds to support Best Buddies programs and expansion in the state of North Carolina.

Mikayla is a member of the executive board for UNC Best Buddies this year. Mikayla’s mom worked with children with intellectual and developmental disabilities and Mikayla has helped out around her classroom all her life.

The Joy Prom is an annual event hosted by UNC Best Buddies with the support of Pi Kappa Phi and the UNC Senior class. The idea for Joy Prom is simple. Create a night for adults with disabilities where they feel more accepted and loved than ever before.

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.