School friendships help fight mental disabilities

Best Buddies Texas lets students gain confidence for new challenges
By Cynthia Leonor Garza

Alyssa Price and Lauren Morgan do what other high school girls will do when they hang out together: eat lots of pizza, go to the movies, and dance and cheer at football games.
When the two were first paired in the Best Buddies program — which connects students with intellectual disabilities with their mainstream peers — at Pasadena Memorial High School, Morgan thought it might be tough to break through to Price's shy demeanor.
"But it's a friendship," said Morgan, 16. "What you put into it you get out of it."
What she's seen is a change in Price, who is now more outgoing and who's moved beyond her comfort zone of family and other students in the special education program.
"Alyssa is not a person who is a self-starter. She kind of hangs back and waits for people to tell her where to go and what to do," said Price's mother, Susan Price. But she relates to and likes her new friend, "so she's more apt to get out of her normal groove. (Her new friendship) helps her out of her routine mindset."
Courtney Crooks, a Best Buddies Texas program manager, said most families will report that the Best Buddy pairing is the first time their son or daughter has a friend outside the special education program.
The nonprofit and international Best Buddies program aims to provide opportunities for friendships and jobs for those with intellectual disabilities. The belief is that friendship is key to building the self-esteem needed for a happy, productive life.
There are 33 high school chapters in the Greater Houston area, five high school chapters in the Dallas area and one in El Paso. There are also 24 chapters at colleges throughout the state. Students commit for one year and are required to make contact once a week and hang out twice a month.
Technology has helped form friendships through the e-buddies program — where participants from across the country are paired and remain in contact online. Crooks said there's a six-month waiting list for volunteers of the e-buddies program, but they are trying to spread the word for individuals with intellectual disabilities to sign up and participate.
At Pasadena Memorial High School, the 40-plus Best Buddy participants and their families also get together as a group various times a year.
This year, they attended a rodeo and potluck dinner and plan on hosting a baseball game.
Morgan spends extra time with Price in her elective class, where she works as a teacher's assistant for the special education program. The two eat lunch together every day and Price, 20, shows her affection for Morgan through the pictures she draws for her.
Morgan said she feels she is the more fortunate buddy.
"Alyssa's a beautiful person. Down syndrome is just one of the obstacles she has, but we all have obstacles," she said.

RESOURCES
The Program Best Buddies introduces socialization opportunities and job coaching, providing the necessary tools for people with intellectual disabilities to become more independent and, consequently, more included in the community. • Best Buddies Middle Schools: Matches students with intellectual disabilities with other middle school students and creates one-to-one friendships between them. • Best Buddies High Schools: Matches students with intellectual disabilities with other high school students. • Best Buddies Colleges: Matches people with intellectual disabilities with college students. • e-Buddies®: Creates respective e-mail friendships between people with and without intellectual disabilities. • Best Buddies Citizens : Pairs people with intellectual disabilities in one-to-one friendships with other individuals in the corporate and civic communities. • Best Buddies Jobs: A supported employment program. Its goal is to secure competitive, paying jobs for people with intellectual disabilities.
Source: bestbuddies.org

On The Internet
For more information about the Best Buddies organization, visit these Web sites: •www.bestbuddiestexas.org •www.bestbuddies.org