THE RACE BEGINS: ASU’s Best Buddies chapter held an event at the Student Recreation Complex on Saturday to raise awareness and funds for people with developmental disabilities. The race started with eating 10 chicken wings and then completing a relay race. (Photo by Nikolai de Vera)
The ASU Best Buddies chapter held the first “Lord of the Wings” event Saturday, raising funds and awareness for the Best Buddies program in Arizona, which pairs volunteers with disabled persons to create long-lasting friendships.
Participants formed teams of four and ate 10 chicken wings before running a relay race, followed by an awards ceremony.
The program assists those with intellectual or developmental disabilities, like autism or Down syndrome, and pairs them in one-to-one friendships with volunteers, said Patricia Barney, deputy director of development for Best Buddies Arizona.
It’s important for members to form friendships with those outside of their immediate community, Barney said.
“You’re not different, you’re the same as everyone else — you just have a disability,” she said of the members.
During the awards ceremony, the crowd was surprised with two donations from Safeway Corporation, which donated $5,000, and Taco Bell, which donated $24,184 to the organization, the crowd immediately breaking out into chants of ‘Taco Bell’.
Also present were numerous corporate sponsors including Chipotle, Coca-Cola and Hooters, which provided the wings for the challenge.
Best Buddies, formed by Anthony Kennedy Shriver in 1989, is the sister organization to the Special Olympics.
Currently, Best Buddies has roughly 2,500 participants in Maricopa County on middle school, high school and college campuses.
March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, and Gov. Jan Brewer declared Saturday “Best Buddies Day”, said Kathleen Rubi, state director of Best Buddies.
The organization provides an outlet for members who don’t have many opportunities to make friendships outside of their families or immediate community, Rubi said.
Members are matched up based on similar interests and can provide academic support as well, she said, but more than anything, it’s about being a friend.
“They’re usually stuck in a special education class … having a friend helps them gain the social skills they need in order to be independent,” Rubi said.
Reach the reporter at anatwood@asu.edu
