Ball State students are creating lasting friendships with adults in the community through the Best Buddies program.
Members participated in a scavenger hunt and picked up supplies to decorate their individual pumpkins outside North Quad during Sunday afternoon.
Best Buddies' objective is to establish a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, according to BestBuddies.org.
Ball State Best Buddies President Kristina Gleissner said the adults in the community are paired with Ball State college students, also known as college buddies.
The junior nursing major said there are about 68 members, which she said breaks down to 23 adults in the community, or "buddies," and about 40 Ball State students.
"Simple joys" are what Gleissner gets out of volunteering with Best Buddies.
"You just kind of forget about worrying about the little things," Gleissner, who's in her sixth year with the program, said.
The college buddies are matched up one-on-one with the buddies. They are required to have weekly contact with their buddies, and they also have to interact with their buddies at least twice a month, she said.
Ball States's program offers activities such as a movie and pajama night, cornhole, letter-writing to soldiers and more. About six programs will happen in the fall, Gleissner said.
Ball State Best Buddies' Facebook group page states Best Buddies created its 2010 Initiative in 2001, with the goal of operating programs in all 50 states, expanding their international programs to 50 countries, and impacting 500,000 people worldwide each year by the end of 2010. Currently, Best Buddies programs engage participants in each of the 50 states and in 46 countries, impacting 700,000 people worldwide.
According to BestBuddies.org, Ball State is one of the program's 16 college and university chapters in Indiana. There are also high school chapters throughout the state.
For more information, or to sign up to become a buddy, visit BestBuddies.org or bestbuddiesindiana.org.
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