{"id":5634,"date":"2015-07-22T17:42:04","date_gmt":"2015-07-22T17:42:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/?p=5634"},"modified":"2019-11-12T16:38:02","modified_gmt":"2019-11-12T21:38:02","slug":"the-26th-annual-best-buddies-international-leadership-conference-packs-in-loads-of-fun-for-student-leaders-in-bloomington-indiana-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/2015\/07\/22\/the-26th-annual-best-buddies-international-leadership-conference-packs-in-loads-of-fun-for-student-leaders-in-bloomington-indiana-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The 26th Annual Best Buddies International Leadership Conference Packs in Loads of Fun for Student Leaders in Bloomington, Indiana"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The 26th Annual Best Buddies International Leadership Conference Packs in Loads of Fun for Student Leaders in Bloomington, Indiana<\/p>\n<p>Presented by C.A. Hartnell<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Kid Quill, Indiana&#8217;s top emcee in 2014 and up-and-coming artist rocks the crowd<\/li>\n<li>Barbara Torres, Best Buddies Jobs participant of over 20 years, wins \u201cBest Buddies Jobs Employee of the Year Award\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Lauren Potter, Best Buddies Ambassador and Star of the TV show \u201cGlee\u201d wins \u201cSpirit of Courage Award\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Jewelry brand ALEX and ANI unveils their new arrow of friendship bangle, which stands for friendship and individuality in which proceeds benefits Best Buddies International<\/li>\n<li>More than 2,600 people tuned in to watch the Conference, live streamed<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Bloomington, IN (July 22, 2015) \u2013 Over 2,100 student leaders, volunteers, and staff from Best Buddies International\u2019s programs around the world participated in the 26th Annual Best Buddies International Leadership Conference: I\u2019M IN presented by C.A. Hartnell, July 17-20 at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. The weekend offered attendees new ideas to share with their chapters\u2019 back home, networking opportunities, and most importantly, lasting friendships.<\/p>\n<p>Best Buddies is a nonprofit organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).<\/p>\n<p>This year\u2019s conference, which brought together student leaders from Best Buddies Middle Schools, High Schools, Colleges and Promoters chapters around the world, featured a fantastic conference opening performance from Best Buddies participant Marlana VanHoose, that brought the crowd to their feet when she sang \u201cI\u2019m Walking on Sunshine\u201d by Katrina and the Waves, accompanied by Best Buddies Ambassador Lisa Smith signing along with her.<\/p>\n<p>An uplifting video of how far we have come as a society to include those with Intellectual and Developmental disabilities kicked off the weekend. Anthony K. Shriver, Founder and Chairman of Best Buddies International, brought the crowd to tears with his inspirational speech comparing his son Joseph, to a young boy he brought on stage named Leo, who was born with Down syndrome. He explained, \u201cWe are all here, so both Joey and Leo can grow up in a world of friendship, inclusion and be given the same amount of respect.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Other highlights from the conference included a special performance by Marlana VanHoose accompanied by the Best Buddies Choir, made up of 60 Best Buddies staff, participants and volunteers. A high energy and exciting Friendship Walk led by Glee\u2019s Lauren Potter, and commentated by Washington, D.C.\u2019s radio personality and Best Buddies board member, Tommy McFly. David DeSanctis, star of the film \u201cWhere Hope Grows\u201d was also in attendance. The closing ceremonies featured several inspiring speeches from Best Buddies Ambassadors, including Samuel Smith (Connecticut), Molly Weissman (Illinois), Brian Tate (Maryland), Vanessa Stegall (Nevada), and Jaime Carne (United Kingdom).<\/p>\n<p>The conference also honored a Best Buddies Middle Schools, High Schools, Colleges and Promoters chapter with the 2014-2015 Overall Outstanding Chapter Award: Lawrence Junior High School in Nevada; Washington-Lee High School in Virginia; Miami University in Ohio and De La Salle Santiago Zobel School in the Philippines.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, Best Buddies Ambassador and star of the hit Television show \u201cGlee\u201d Lauren Potter, was honored with the 2015 \u201cSpirit of Courage Award,\u201d which is presented to an outstanding Buddy Ambassador on behalf of their work to further the Best Buddies mission of empowering and advocating for those within the IDD community.<\/p>\n<p>The 2015 Leadership Conference had several of Best Buddies\u2019 Jobs participants in attendance. Barbara Torres, employed for 20 years with Holland and Knight law firm in Miami, Fl., was awarded the \u201cBest Buddies Jobs Employee of the Year Award\u201d, which is presented to an outstanding Jobs participant for their dedication and exemplary work ethic in the work force.<\/p>\n<p>Through various workshops, students were prepared and inspired for an exciting school year, implementing Best Buddies\u2019 mission of changing the world through friendship. They discussed such topics as social inclusion, advocacy for people with IDD, and volunteer management.<\/p>\n<p>ABOUT BEST BUDDIES INTERNATIONAL:<\/p>\n<p>Best Buddies\u00ae is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Founded in 1989 by Anthony K. Shriver, Best Buddies is a vibrant organization that has grown from one original chapter to more than 1,900 middle school, high school, and college chapters worldwide. Today, Best Buddies\u2019 eight formal programs \u2014 Middle Schools, High Schools, Colleges, Citizens, e-Buddies\u00ae , Jobs, Ambassadors, and Promoters \u2014 engage participants in each of the 50 states and in over 50 countries, positively impacting the lives of more than 900,000 people with and without disabilities around the world. In many cases, as a result of their involvement with Best Buddies, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities secure rewarding jobs, live on their own, become inspirational leaders, and make lifelong friendships. For more information, please visit www.bestbuddies.org, <a href=\"http:\/\/facebook.com\/bestbuddies\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">facebook.com\/bestbuddies<\/a> or <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/bestbuddies\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">twitter.com\/bestbuddies<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>ABOUT C.A. HARTNELL<\/p>\n<p>C.A. Hartnell is a Las Vegas based author of an award-winning series of four historical fiction chapter books for children eight and older. Her four-book series is set in 1950s Southern California and earned a 2013 Mom&#8217;s Choice Silver Award. This award program is globally recognized for sharing excellence in family-friendly media, products, and services.<\/p>\n<p>Media Inquiries\/Photos:<\/p>\n<p>Nicole Maddox<br \/>\n<a href=\"mailto:NicoleMaddox@bestbuddies.org\">NicoleMaddox@bestbuddies.org<\/a><br \/>\n305-374-2233 ext.343<\/p>\n<p>Jeanne Turkheimer<br \/>\n<a href=\"mailto:JeanneTurkheimer@bestbuddies.org\">JeanneTurkheimer@bestbuddies.org<\/a><br \/>\n305-374-2233 ext. 215<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The 26th Annual Best Buddies International Leadership Conference Packs in Loads of Fun for Student Leaders in Bloomington, Indiana Presented [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"news-single-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[228],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The 26th Annual Best Buddies International Leadership Conference Packs in Loads of Fun for Student Leaders in Bloomington, Indiana - 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