Kenzie Grant

Western History & Culture

Professor Sinclair

4 April 2017

Visitation Paper: Best Buddies

Youre retarded, Stop being a retard, or Im being a retard are three phrases I hear

a lot when I walk around campus. A lot of kids think this description of calling someone

retarded or a retard is okay, especially if it is a joke. There is a growing awareness that these

words are hurtful, no matter how they are used. For my visitation, I went to my public high

school back home and helped out with their best buddies program. The Best Buddies Program is

to provide an integrated approach to offering enriching activities and connections for

intellectually and developmentally challenged in our community (Mission Statement). My

mission while helping out with the best buddies program was to see how this certain school was

committed to the good life and how they helped the students who had disabilities.

Over spring break I got to go back home to California, where I knew I had to start me

visitation project. I had emailed the director of a program called Best Buddies about coming in

and helping out and she was delighted that I took so much interest in it. I started the Monday I

got home and went into shadow and watch the other volunteers to see what I would have to do

that week. During my first day, I shadowed two people. One was the co-director of the program,

Heather Cooper, and the other a student, Leilani Camara. Cooper showed me what I would be

doing the rest of the week and showed me different ways of communicating with the students.

Many students had communication issue and were nervous to speak, so she showed me how to
break them out of their shells. She also talked me through the learning process that the kids go

through. Each day they are taught two different subjects. For example, that day was basic earth

science and reading/writing. Cooper explained how many of the would not pay attention, so you

have to have an interactive lesson plan, instead of lecturing them. With the reading and writing,

there is a program of the computer that allows the students to play different games, where they

have to read passages and respond to the questions and at the end, if they get the answer right,

their reward is a little animation of what they just read. She also explained to me what their

program tries to teach the students. She went over four basic teachings, which were teaching

students to be positive, being kind to others, setting goals for themselves and most importantly

integrating them into different social settings. After talking with Cooper and getting to know

what the program was all about and how it works within the school, I got to shadow a student,

who helped volunteer. Leilani Camara is a senior at the high school and is a big part of the

program. She is an advocate for the students in the program and helps out with the learning,

fundraising and different activities the Best Buddies program provides. I followed her around

for about two hours. As a student volunteer, Leilani using her free periods and lunch time to

come in and help with the kids. During her lunch, was about the time that the kids started their

reading and writing assignment. Leilani would walk around the room and help any of the

students if they were struggling. She made it a point to show me not to give the students the

answers, but to guide them in the right direction. After they had completed their assignments, it

was about one-thirty, which was the end of the school day for them. During my first day, I was

nervous that the rest of the week the kids would not want to ask for my help or talk to me

because they had not known me, but the rest of the week really surprised me.
 The following days after my shadow day were really good. The days followed what I was

told to expect. Two subjects and day, helping with class work and overall just working with kids.

The kids really started to open up to me and trust me. They would ask for my help more and

more and when I left early one day, Cooper told me how they were sad that I could not stay the

whole day. I started to really connect with the kids and I was really starting to see that I was

making an impact on the students life. My last two days were a little different from the first

three. Instead of working all day, the students starting to campaign and raise awareness for the

special needs program. During the regular lunch hours on Thursday, student volunteers, like

Leilani, would come and take the students out and advocate to End the R-word in the quad.

There was a big poster that people could sign to pledge to end the R-word and on that Friday the

students held a big bake sale to raise money for a Best Buddies Prom that they throw every year.

By hosting this special event it provides the students with special needs the opportunity to

experience a High School Prom just like any other student.

I believe that this program is one of many programs that is committed to the good life.

This program helps out students with any type of disability to ensure a good quality education,

when the school system may not be of help. Not only is this program helping the students get

through high school, but it will, in turn, help them live a good life. They are being taught the

basic skills they will need in life and many times people with these types of disabilities are

thrown into the corner because they are seen are retarded, but this is not true. Programs like

this not only help the students, but also help advocate and raise awareness for the people who

may not have a voice. The Best Buddies Program really connects with our class when it talks

about the basic skills that they try to teach. Sonja Lyubomirsky's twelve Happiness activity
correlate almost directly to what the program tries to instill. Cooper talks about teaching the

students to stay positive, which can correlate to Cultivating optimism, being kind to others,

which can relate to Nurturing Relationships and Practicing acts of kindness, setting goals for

themselves, which directly relates to Committing to your goals and integrating them into

different social settings, which can be done by looking at all twelve happiness activities. At the

end of the week, I was sad to say goodbye to the students, but I knew that the best buddies

program was committed to the good life and would do anything for the kids who society deems

unfit.
Citation:

"Mission Statement." Best Buddies International. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2017.