Downtown Riverside

Downtown in December is so beautiful! Yesterday, Hugo and I went there to observe the lights and check out the stores there! I found out that Hugo will be continuing school and working part time, like he did before he graduated. After shopping, we went back to his house to listen to Eminem music that I got him for Christmas! It was really nice to spend quality time with my buddy yesterday! We will be going to castle park in a few days.........Happy Christmas Eve Hugo!

A Kid in Aladdin's Palace

Yesterday I dropped by Stacey's house to give her a Christmas teddy bear. She was really excited when she received my gift because it's the first bear in her stuffed animal collection!

Then we watched the movie A Kid in Aladdin's Palace. If that sounds oddly familiar to anyone, it's because this is the sequel to A Kid in King Arthur's Court! So the movie was kind of silly and cheesy to me, but Stacey loved it! She said she was going to watch it again after I left her house.

Random fact I learned about Stacey on this one-to-one: She really loves gum!

One 2 One With Hugo

On Tuesday, Hugo came over my apartment to hang out. We had our little study session, looked at movie trailers, and we also just talked about our lives. We were going to go watch a movie, but we could not decide, since we heard that King Kong was good, but it was too long for us! I saw Hugo at the X-mas party on December 16, and it was also his last day of school there. Hugo has officially graduated from Project Team, and he is currently looking for a job. I could tell how much Hugo wants to become a CHP. Hugo used to work at a police station, and when we were on our way to my apartment, we saw a couple of police cars. Naturally, I would drive more carefully and think that police cars are bad luck, but to Hugo its more than good luck. Hugo joked around, saying, "Pull us over!" He just loves the presence of police officers. Oddly enough, when I drove Hugo back we encountered two more police cars......Thank goodness I always drive within the speed limit and had my headlights on! Anyways, we had a good time, and plan to go to castle park soon, before Hugo embarks on his journey to Mexico for a few weeks with his family. It's also Lizette's (Hugo's sister) birthday on January 4th, so I plan to do a little something for her. This reminds me that it will be Thomas' (Buddy Alumni) birthday on January 19 and I plan to gather a couple of friends to throw him a surprise party. Well, enough of me. Have a great vacation and Christmas everyone~!

X-Mas Party at project TEAM

With my last final on Friday morning from 8 - 11 I decided that I would go over and meet the buddies for the first time. I am an associate members. As we arrived everyone was formally dressed. All the buddies looked spectacular. As for me I was dressed in jeans and a shirt and felt completely underdressed compared to the buddies. The buddies ate and sang a couple of songs in Kerokee(spelling error Sorry) which were very delightful. After the kareoke and food they proceeded to open gifts where each buddy was a secret Santa for another buddy. Each one of the buddies got a chance to open the gifts their secret Santa had given them. When each one opened their gifts they were excited to open them as soon as they could. After a wonderful afternoon spent with the buddies and Mr. Elton we headed home for UCR.
P.S. sorry for the grammatical errors and spelling errors!

Christmas Festivities

Saturday finals are never fun, especially Saturday morning ones! But we’ve all finished another quarter, so time really flies. Congratulations to all first-year members who’ve survived their first quarter at UC Riverside!!

Yesterday I went to Project Team for the Christmas party, where I had some one-on-one time with Stacey. After a long week of exams, I found it a great chance to relax and chat about our holiday plans while eating pizza. We also set a date next week to bake chocolate chip cookies. Chocolate chip is Stacey’s favorite!

Some of the Buddies also entertained everyone by singing along with the karaoke machine. It reminded me of my own family parties because food and karaoke are always the staples of our events. After eating and singing, it was time for the Secret Santa gift exchange, where each student gave and received one gift.

Eldon was really impressed with the number of College Buddies that were able to make it out to Project Team. Seven people from UCR attended! Thanks to Noelle, Ariel, Miriam, Thi, Mustafa, and of course our devoted College Buddy Director, Anna, for coming!!

One of the Buddies asked for Marisol and Janette, who both attended Project Team’s Halloween Party. This is a great example of Associate Members who’ve managed to make an impact on a Buddy. So for all those Associate Members who want to become College Buddies, these group events are a great way to get to know some of the Buddies!

Hope everyone enjoys the holiday season!

Get Paid!

Paid Tutoring Position Available!

Please contact us at Best_Buddies_Riverside@yahoo.com if you have had experience tutoring people who have intellectual disablities in the area of English.

Have a great Christmas!!!!

Best, Best Buddies~
Best, Best Best Buddies
Best, Best Buddies~
Best, Best Best Buddies
B-U-D-D-I-E-S
B-U-D-D-I-E-S
Best, Best Buddies~
Best, Best Best Buddies!!!!!!!!

:)

My Buddy and I...

It's comforting everytime I spoke or hung out with my Buddy, Bridgette. She is very communicative and friendly once I got to know her better. We went to see Harry Potter together the other weekend. It was such a good movie. Everyone...go and check out the new Harry Potter film...trust me...it's worth it! Yes, I heart Best Buddies Inter. and y'all. Thanks Sara n' Anna for informing me about Best Buddies. It has been a fabulous opportunity and experience that I've encountered this quarter. Thanks everyone and best wishes.

Happy Holidays,
Happy New Years '06,

Active Members of November!

College Buddy Pair of the Month: Cassandra Forrest (CB) and Rachel Contreras (Buddy)


We knew that Cassandra Forrest would be dedicated the day that we interviewed her for her college buddy position. Cassandra has fulfilled the requirements of a college buddy, having went out with her buddy twice in November. She also called and emailed Rachel. They recently watched a movie and ate pizza together. In November, they also went to the mall and tried on clothes! Cassandra attended the November 19 Ice Cream Social, participated in the See's Candy Sale, attended the Spaghetti Factory Matching Party, and attended all three meetings this quarter. She returned her friendship updates on time as well~! Cassandra is a great example that college buddies who do not have cars can still be very active! Rachel attended the Spaghetti Factory Matching Party, the Halloween Party, and the Love, Incorporated TV Taping. Go Cassandra and Rachel!

Associate Member for November: Tiffany Aman!

Tiffany Aman is currently a fourth year and has been a part of Best Buddies since she was a second year. Tiffany has supported our club by attending our informational meeting, the Spaghetti Factory Matching Party, and our Ice Cream Social. Tiffany has also helped us post flyers around campus, took initiative to post a blog on our webpage, participated in our See's Candy Sale, set up and sold pizza at our Block Party, and helped us recruit new members during the summer. Go Tiffany!

Cassandra, Rachel, and Tiffany, we wish you the best of luck in winning our Most Active Member of the Year Award. :)

X-Mas Party This Friday!

We know its finals time and life for you is pretty hectic right now, but we were just informed that Project Team will be holding a Christmas Party this Friday, December 16, 2005. If you have the time, or if you are done with finals before Friday, this is a great opportunity to see the buddies! If you are a college buddy, this can count as one to one time if you spend the majority of the time (one to one) there with your buddy. Food and drinks will be provided! You do not need to be an official member to attend! You can drive there or carpool with us if you like.

Date: Friday, December 16
Time: 12:00pm-2:00pm
Location: Project Team
6666 School Circle, Riverside, California

Directions from UCR
Take the 91West
Exit Central Avenue
Make Right on Central
Go Straight Past Magnolia
Make a Left on School Circle (Small Street)
School is on Your left Hand Side

People Who Need Rides:
Meet at 11:30am at UCR's Lot 24, which is next to the UCR police station. Look for Anna

Good luck on finals!

Best Buddies Officers

Wall of Donations

We just wanted to thank all of these people and places for making donations to us:

Dr. Jan Blacher-our faculty advisor
Vons at the Riverside Plaza
Food 4 Less on University Avenue
Rite Aide at the Canyon Crest Town Center
Hollywood Video on Central Avenue near Project TEAM
Home Depot in Moreno Valley
McDonalds on University Avenue
Nails for You

If you are ever in these areas and need to buy something, these are great places to shop!

We would like to recognize our faculty advisor, Dr. Jan Blacher, for donating $50 to our club! She will be teaching an education class on disabilities in Spring Quarter. The class is called Education 116 and you might be interested in taking this class!
Thank you Dr. Blacher!

-BB Officers

Thank You Officers!

I would like to thank all the officers for doing a phenomenal job! We have gone so far this year because of your commitment and cooperation. I know that you all are putting a lot of time into your roles, and it shows! Let's make this year the best year! Have a great vacation!

Sincerely,

Anna