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Driving toward a more inclusive community
Queensway Audi donates big to Best Buddies
On the heels of Audi Canada’s announcement of renewed support for the Best Buddies program, Queensway Audi dealer has collected $1,000 from its staff and customers, and has come on as a $5,000 Bronze Sponsor for the Audi Best Buddies Challenge. More. and check out the coverage in SNAP Etobicoke.
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Audi Canada recognized for support of Best Buddies.
Audi Canada is the lead sponsor for the Audi Best Buddies Challenge, Toronto, an exciting 10K running event. The Globe and Mail highlighted a few automotive companies supporting charities, including Audi.
Read More here, or here.
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Best Buddies volunteer aces senior year.
Best Buddies volunteers are phenomenal, in so many ways! On top of volunteering with the program at her school, Brianna Smrke achieved perfect marks in her eight courses during her final year at Michael Power/St. Joseph High School. Read More.
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Honouring a friend taken too soon.
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Building better friendships - Versa Construction donated $5,000 to chapter
The Best Buddies chapter at St. Jean de Brebeuf received a great $5,000 donation from the parents of a chapter participant. The chapter held a part to thank the donors, and celebrate. Check out coverage from Vaughan Weekly.
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The Life Changers - Best Buddies coverage in Ottawa Citizen
Best Buddies chapters in Ottawa recently held a regional dance. While there, the Ottawa Citizen's Chris Seto spoke to members from the Gloucester High School chapter. Check out the great story.
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Best Buddies Executive Member is United Way Volunteer of the year!
Chris Martin, a member of the chapter executive at UNB - Fredericton, was chosen as the recipient of the 2010 United Way Outstanding Volunteer Award for New Brunswick. Along with being part of the chapter executive, Martin also volunteers with many other organizations.
Read more here. Congratulations Chris!
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And the winners are ...Best Buddies Blues Band director honoured by Regina mayor
Chris Hamilton, founder/director of Best Buddies Blues Band received the Innovation in the Arts award at the sixth annual Regina Mayor's Arts & Business Awards on Thursday, April 15th. Read the full article.
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Best Buddies featured on McGill Campus Radio
CKUT, the campus radio station from McGill University, produced an hour long feature on Best Buddies Canada. The program aired on Wednesday, April 14th. Check out the station's website and listen to the program.
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"Making a Difference" at Lester B. Pearson
Global TV in Toronto featured Best Buddies in their regular "Making a Difference" segment on April 14th, 2010. Susan Hay spoke to students from Lester B. Pearson to find out how the program has changed their lives. Watch the video.
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Best Buddies share incredible bond
Over the Easter weekend, the Brantford Expositor ran a front page feature on Best Buddies in the city. The story focused on Amy Griffith and Dave Clarkson, among other volunteers. Read more.
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National Coverage provided by Breakfast Television
As part of Best Buddies Month, Breakfast Television in five cities will feature Best Buddies, on Wednesday, March 24th. Check it out in Toronto, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary (Part 1 and Part 2) and Vancouver.
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Dodge Ball back in North Bay
Each year in Best Buddies Month, the Best Buddies chapters in North Bay organize a fantastic Dodge Ball tournament, as a fundraiser. The community is invited to take part in this event, and all the participants have a blast. The tournament is back this year. Check out BayToday.ca for more coverage.
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Leo Hayes High School Chapter Featured in New Brunswick Teachers' Association Newsletter
In it's second year and with 30 buddy pairs, the program at Leo Hayes High School in New Brunswick is going strong. They were recently featured in the NBTA's newsletter. Check it out here (on page 22).
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Community supports fundraising efforts for University of Saskatchewan Best Buddies chapter
Best Buddies has had a lot of success at the University of Saskatchewan, and for Best Buddies Month, six area restaurants are supporting the chapter through a unique fundraiser. The Sheaf, the U of S student newspaper, provides additional details.
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Recruiting for Best Buddies at the University of Alberta
The Best Buddies chapter at the University of Alberta was active from 2005 to 2009, but due to a lack of interest in leadership positions, the chapter is not active this year. Best Buddies has launched new recruitment efforts.
The Gateway, the student newspaper, provided this coverage.
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Best Buddies Blues Band gears up for the Paralympics
The Best Buddies Blues Band, also known as ‘BQUAD’, is group of high school students involved in an extra-curricular and curricular instrumental music program at Dr. Martin LeBoldus High School, Regina. They are launching a fundraising effort allowing them to perform at the Paralympics in Vancouver. CBC Regina provided this coverage.
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Updates from the East Coast
The November 2009 New Brunswick Association for Community Living newsletter features stories from four of our chapters: Université de Moncton Campus d'Edmundston, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton and Mount Allison University.
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Sharing Breakfast with Best Buddies
Windsor Secondary in North Vancouver, BC was featured on CityTV's Breakfast Television on November 10. The station heard about Best Buddies' recognition from Maxwell House as one of the Brew Some Good contest winners, in which Best Buddies received a $10,000 donation from Maxwell House.
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Best Buddies looking to rebuild in Fort Frances
"The most dedicated chapter in Ontario" at Fort Frances High School, received some media attention in its efforts to recruit new students.
Check out the article here.
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Video of 2009 Conference Speaker
Robert Pio Hajjar, of IDEAL-WAY spoke at the 2009 Best Buddies Regional Leadership Conference in Hamilton. His presentation was energetic and inspirational. Following his speech, many Best Buddies participants started a campaign to have him appear on Ellen.
Check out a video of his speech.
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Securing club status for Best Buddies Ryerson
The Campus Coordinators of the Best Buddies program at Ryerson University, Kateryna Aksenchuk and Samiksha Singh, have been trying to get their chapters recognized as an official student club on campus.
The Eyeopener, Ryerson's student newspaper, picked up their story.
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The Power of One - Spotlight on Best Buddies
Alex Beveridge and Samantha Kelsey, a buddy pair from McGill University, were recently featured on CTV Montreal's "Power of One" segment. The segment focuses on individuals doing great things in their community.
Check out the video here. Scroll down to see the video from June 28, 2009.
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A Cash Boost for Best Buddies
Raymond Cowling honoured Best Buddies with a $500,000 donation, as part of the recently launched $10 million legacy campaign.
Get more information here.
Check out the National Post article here or here.
Check out the Globe and Mail article here or here.
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Motorcycle Ride Highlights Unique Friendship Program New to Region
On June 6th, the road of about 200 motorcycle engines coming into Smiths Falls will serve to sing the praises of the Best Buddies program. The Motorcycle Ride with Best Buddies starts in Ottawa and travels to Smiths Falls and will include many dignitaries from the local and federal government.
Read the full story here.
Read a second story leading up to the event here.
Read a follow-up article from Smiths Falls here.
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Best Buddies program delivers value for small investment
Best Buddies has been given a grant to expand in London-area schools. Deb Matthews, London-North-Centre MPP and Ontario's minister of children's and youth services, recently announced the $72,000 Ontario Trillium Foundation grant for Best Buddies.
Read the full story here.
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Best Buddies Blues Band puts on their travelling shoes
The Best Buddies Blues Band from Dr. Martin LeBoldus High School in Regina has struck a note with fans in Saskatchewan and is looking to carry its tunes to audiences in British Columbia, attending the Paralympics next year in Vancouver.
Read the full story here and check out a video of the band performing.
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Strathroy DCI launches program
105.7 myFM in Strathroy, Ontario spoke with Mitch Aveling and Chelsey Maden, two students in the recently formed Best Buddies chapter at Strathroy District Collegiate Institute about their friends.
Check it out here, and listen to an audio clip.
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Another successful Dodge Ball tourney in North Bay
For the third year in a row, the Best Buddies chapters in North Bay, ON, held a successful Dodge Ball Tournament. On Saturday, March 7th, 2009, about 150 people gathered at Algonquin High School, helping to raise more than $750.
Read the full story and see some pictures here.
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Best Buddies Bond at Westview Secondary School
Westivew Secondary School, in Maple Ridge, BC, launched the Best Buddies program in 2008, and is the first chapter in the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows school district to pilot the program, to outstanding success. The chapter was highlighted in their local paper recently.
Read the full story here.
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Best Buddies Chapter President wins YMCA Award
Jennifer Guillemette, Chapter President for the Best Buddies chapter at Chippewa Secondary School recently received a YMCA Peace Medal from the YMCA of North Bay, for her involvement in Best Buddies, and other charities.
Read the full story here.
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Student Volunteer up for Russ Jackson Award
Harrison Petropolis, a student buddy with the St. Francis Xavier chapter of Best Buddies has been awarded Atlantic University Sport Student-Athlete Community Service Award winner and is the conference nominee for the Russ Jackson Award, which recognizes a Canadian university football player who excels on the field, in academics, and in community service.
Read more here.
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Focus on Best Buddies in Thunder Bay
Our chapters in Thunder Bay, at Lakehead University and Confederation College, received some media attention as they worked to recruit students.
Read the stories here and here.
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14th Annual Best Buddies conference a success!
For the first time since its inception 15 years ago, Best Buddies Canada is holding its National Leadership and Development Conference from August 7th-10th in Montreal at John Abbott College.
Read the full story
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Best Buddies Almaguin receives $5,000 boost
The Best Buddies chapter at Almaguin Highlands Secondary School received $5,000 in funding from the Toskan Casale Foundation's Youth and Philanthropy Initiative to end the 2008 school year.
Read the full story
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Highlighted in the Catholic Register
The Best Buddies program reaches out not only to these students with special needs but to the entire school community”.
TORONTO - Nicole Alvarez would have never imagined spending her final year of high school initiating a program for students with physical and mental difficulties. Yet despite the heavy grade 12 workload, Alvarez found herself starting the Best Buddies program at Francis Libermann Catholic Secondary School in Toronto. The program enables students of every grade to spend some time with students who have physical or mental challenges.
Read the full Story
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Thrill of the Ascot
CTV visits Best Buddies at The 2008 Thrill and Fashion of the Ascot. Held at the Woodbine Race Track, the event was an entertaining and successful fundraiser.
Video Includes interviews with Buddies, Students and Danial Greenglass
See the CTV Video Report.
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Annual Gala
Our 14th annual Gala was incredibly successful, featuring special guests Shirley MacLaine and songstress Chantal Kreviazuk. The event raised $850,000 for the Best Buddies program.
More details on the Annual Galas.
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Best Buddies Chapter President honoured as one of YMCA's Women of Excellence in 2007
Sabrina Karim, one of the students who helped found the Best Buddies chapter at Catholic Central High School in London, was honoured as one of the YMCA's Women of Excellent in 2007, in London, ON. Read more here.
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Blast from the past
Check out some older articles:
- A feature in Abilities Magazine from 1999
- A feature from the Ottawa Citizen
- A focus on Sacred Heart's chapter, in Newmarket, from 2004
- An article from our 1998 Gala from the Toronto Sun
- An article on our 1997 Gala from the Toronto Star
- Articles on our 1996 Gala: Toronto Star, Toronto Sun
- Articles on our first Gala, in 1995: Toronto Sun, Globe and Mail, Toronto Star
- A feature on Anthony Kennedy Shriver in People Magazine, from 1995
- Our first piece of media coverage, a feature in the Toronto Star, from August 1994
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