Best Buddies - UC Riverside

Bowling Event in October, 2007

2007-11-24T22:24:00.000-08:00

The UCR Best Buddies's members and their buddies are having a great time bowling . I really enjoy getting to know more about my best buddy, Nick. I am really happy to see that he is having fun bowling and playing video games at the arcade. It was a BLAST!

Best Buddies Matching Banquet

2007-10-13T22:15:00.000-07:00

The matching party was a success! Over half of our Riverside Project Team buddies are now part of Best Buddies. Everyone got to meet their buddies. I had a lot of fun getting to know my buddy, Nick. He is very sweet and genuine. I am really glad that he is my best buddy. Nick's favorite interests are watching movies, watching baseball games, playing basketball, and hanging at the mall. He enjoys attending school at Project Team. Also, he is really into horror films. The most recent film that Nick has seen is Resident Evil 3. I am really excite and eager to get to know and spend more time with my buddy, Nick.

Fun Times - October 20, 2007

2007-10-01T23:21:00.000-07:00

Richard and I had so much fun at the bowling alley. Richard is a fantastic bowler. I always lost to him. We played four games until we couldn't bowl anymore. I really enjoyed seeing Richard's laughter and fulfillment everytime he made a strike.

Best Buddies Bash - March 18, 2007

2007-03-19T00:12:00.000-07:00

Brian Ngo, Richard (my best buddy) and I are hanging out and watching the game at the Bash.

The Project Team Buddies were having a great time playing the game "HOT Potato" with other Project Team Buddies from different High Schools.

MOre Fun Times with the Buddies!!!

In this picture: UCR Buddies - Kevin Izquierdo, Annalisa, Kenneth

Project Team Buddies - Paul, Richard, Johnny and others...

MORE OF WHAT DISNEYLAND CAN OFFER!

2007-02-13T14:56:00.000-08:00

Febuary 11, 2007 : 7:30 am - 5:00 pm

Wow, Disneyland has always been my favorite place to spent the day at. IT'S EVEN BETTER NOW that I got a chance to spend it with everyone in Best Buddies. I got to hang out with my best buddy Richard along with the other buddies. My buddy really enjoyed some of the rides at Disneyland. He said he would spent the night there if he'd the chance. Moreover, Richard and his friend Darington really enjoyed the WACKY HATS we got them while we were checking out some of the shops at Disneyland. Brian and his buddy, Darington got to experience the log ride and Stars Wars experience together. I thought Disneyland was the Best Place to become BEST BUDDY WITH ANOTHER.

A Special Thank to Eldon, our Advisor and Supervisor of Progect
Team. Also, Kevin Izquierdo who is the president of Best Buddies. Thank you for planning the event.

Good times.

DISNEYLAND RECAP!!!!

2007-02-11T21:02:00.000-08:00

WOW What a blast! Well from what I can see this website has not been updated in a long time... Really what is with all these overlapping pictures? We really need someone to clean this place up... Hint...Hint.... Well the Disneyland trip was an absolute blast for those who came. We left at 8 am and returned at 6:30. It was great to spend time with my lovely and extremely hot girlfriend and hang out with two of my buds, Tomas and Johnny. I also consider my g/f sort of like a buddy too because she keeps getting lost like Johnny. Well not exactly. Johnny was better than all of us and we were really lucky to be paired up with him because he knew the park better than all of us combined. The day began with me falling asleep on the bus and my girlfriend taking pictures of me drooling on the window. I awoke at around 9 am at Disney land. We piled out into pouring rain and huddled around our few umbrellas, scarffed down some donuts and trotted of to Pirates of the Caribbean. A poor imitation of Jack Sparrow awaited us there who was busy flirting with college girls and taking photos with families. The haunted mansion and Indian Jones were our next rides. Haunted Mansion was ok but I got a bad case of whiplash from the Indiana Jones ride and I kind of wished afterwards I would have ditched it for some food like Johnny. Adventureland was great too. Johnny and Tomas drove and I got to sit in traffic in the bumper car lanes. Nothing ever changes in So Cal. The food was great also, I never thought I would pay so much for dorm food after college. Eating was entertaining too as I got to see 3 yr olds fight a really good Darth Vadar imitation and win every time. Darth Mall made an appearance as well except he didn't get cut in half like in Episode 1 (what a shame). If Disney pulled that off I would be back every year. After this Johnny got sick of Anita and I hugging and ditched us for Toon Town so we of course missed the 1 o'clock meeting at the castle but who really wanted to go anyways?? But there is nothing like a good college try! Toon Town would have been better if Goofy actually took time to take pictures with Johnny instead of flirting with his co-worker but at least our buddies got to see Mickey Mouse. Soon after Anita coaxed me into carrying her uphill so naturally my back was hurting so we decided to take a break on the steam ship and travel around the island in Adventure Land at 3 miles per hour. That was enough sitting down for me so I talked everyone into piling aboard a canoe where I tried to make Johnny wear an undersized life jacket. The canoe ship was the best part of the day. There is nothing like being in the open water and traveling with your own strength! Tomas also splashed water on me too. So much water landed on me that I was half soaked. But luckily we had to get back to the warm bus where I could dry off faster than the cold. It turned out to be a great day. Not to long and not to short. Perfect!And the donuts weren't exactly stale either... yum yum yum... By the way Anita got two...

I would liek to say thank you to all of those who put in so much hard work in preparing this fun activity! It was a great activity!

Sincerely,

Me

2 11 07 Disneyland Trip!

2007-02-11T20:16:00.000-08:00

Today's Disneyland Trip was really fun! I got to hang out with Tomas and Johnny and I got to see a lot of members from last year. It was also really nice to see that there were also other schools at Disneyland, including USC and CSUSD. Thank goodness there was a big bus to take all of us because our group was very big. I enjoy reconnecting with my friends from Best Buddies! Go Disability Awareness Day!

A Part of Best Buddies

2007-01-15T19:17:00.014-08:00

I had many fun times hanging out with my buddy. Best Buddies is one of the best experiences that I have ever had as a college student at UC Riverside. I really enjoyed interacting and spending times with my buddy because he is really friendly and one of the most honest friend that I have found. Even though he is intellectually disabled, he is not internally or integrity disabled. I have learned so much from my buddy that it is not only I that enhances his life on a one to one friendship, but it is also he that changed my life much more that anyone could have imagined.

2006/2007 Friendship Updates

2007-01-15T18:14:00.000-08:00

This year's friendship updates were very successful. Many of our members were able to fulfilled the mission of our club by enhancing the lives of people with intellectual disabilities and providing one on one friendships. It will be highly appreciated individually and nationally due to everyone's dedications and integrity to promote an humanitarian society such as Best Buddies.

Some of our dedicated and honorable members include:
Kevin Izquiero
Cassandra Forrest
Lena Jordan
Karisma Kothari
Andrew Pham

Thank you everyone for your dedication and kind heart.

Matching Party

2006-10-31T17:50:00.000-08:00

The matching party this year was held at the Old Spaghetti Factory. There was an awesome turnout and the college buddies got the chance to meet their buddies. Best Buddies is off to a running start this year with our next event coming up November 4th at Chuck E. Cheese!

--Pictures!!!--

Project TEAM Open House

2006-10-17T06:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Project TEAM had an open house. I saw several familiar faces including Trent, Johnny, Kevin O., Felix, and Paul. Johnny was really funny because I was mentioning to the parents that he was the President of Best Buddies for Project TEAM. Later Johnny told me that he feels like a President and that he had body guards. He is so hilarious! It was nice to see new faces too! I'm a little sad that Jade already graduated and that Mrs. Porter won't be around any more. Anways, take care everyone. See you at the banquet.

Block Party

2006-10-02T00:32:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!

The UC Riverside Block Party was about a week ago. We set up a booth and sold root beer floats and recruited more members. We made some money and I hung out with Johnny most of the time. It was a good time. Johnny sure knows how to work a crowd. He helped us out a lot with recruiting. We split up and handed out flyers to everyone passing by. Johnny would give his entire stack of flyers away in what seemed like just a few seconds. He's fearless when it comes to talking to people. He sure likes the ladies, too. We walked around a bit while we had a break from the booth. Johnny and I ran into a lot of familiar faces. We eventually found an interactive booth where he was given the opportunity to throw a pie at a girl's face for only a $1.50. Johnny seemed to savor every moment of this pie throwing activity. Poor girl... haha!

Overall the Block Party was a success. Anna, our former College Buddy Director, came to help us out as well. It was good to see her again.

Special thanks to all the officers who came to help - Aimee, Drew, Karisma, Marisol, Janette, and Kieu!
Best Buddies Members Chris Tran and Heather Sipin helped out a ton as well. Thanks to them!

And of course, a big thanks to Johnny for helping us recruit and helping me to carry all the stuff back to my car from the Block Party. It was quite a job!

2006-09-15T20:06:00.000-07:00

Hey Friends!

How are you all doing? Anyways, did you all know that Best Buddies is now an official cause of Miss Teen USA, Miss USA, and Miss Universe? That's really great! Well, I hope everyone is doing well. I'ved talked to Eldon and some of the buddies and I learned that school has started for them for a while. I ran into a few buddies this summer. Good to see them! Well take care and good luck with your vacation!

Best Buddies on TV

2006-07-27T20:08:00.000-07:00

"Just a reminder to tune in to our national television broadcast of the Volvo Best Buddies Challenge: Hyannis Port. The show will air in all U.S. markets except Boston on NBC at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 29. WB56 Boston will air the show in Boston at 3 p.m. ET on Saturday August 5.

Hope you enjoy the show,"

Anthony K. Shriver

International Award

2006-07-24T11:24:00.000-07:00

Congratulations! Kevin found out at the International Leadership Conference on Saturday that we received the Outstanding Chapter Award (International Award)~! Congratulations everyone!

Bear Facts 2006!

2006-07-08T09:09:00.000-07:00

Bear Facts 2006!

Active Members of May!

2006-07-07T14:44:00.000-07:00

Active Members of May!

College Buddy Pair of May: Joon Nam (CB) and Robert Sweetwater (B)

Joon has been paired with Robert only since Spring Quarter, but I know that Robert loves this match! Joon and Robert talk on the phone frequently and have been a part of many one to one outings for Spring. Some of the things they have done together include the following: mall, Chinese food, visit Robert's mom at the hospital, and play video games. Joon is very good at returning phone calls from Robert and the officers! One of my officers regarded Joon as "a very responsible person." Besides this, Joon has been to our Spring meeting, emails me often, and updates me well. Splendid job Joon! I'm very positive that Robert really enjoys being friends with you because he is very happy when I mention you to him!

Robert has been a very active Buddy this year as well. He has been to the Spaghetti Factory Matching Social, the Halloween Party, the Ice Cream Social, the Christmas Party, the Best Buddies Dance, the Special Olymic Soccer Game, and many more events. His funny jokes make everyone laugh!

Active Associate Member of May: Adriana Gomez

Next, I would like to recognize Adriana Gomez for being the active associate of May~! She found out about Best Buddies through the presentation we made in Dr. Blacher's class. She donated soap and sponge for us to use during the Car Wash and she frequently calls me as well. Hugo really likes Adriana's company! The events that Adriana has participated in include the following......

April 2006
-Kid’s Relay Community Service April 30

May 2006
-Pool Party May 6
-Student Organization Awards at UCR May 18
-End of the Year Banquet May 21
-Benefit Concert Fundraiser May 25
-Meeting May 30

June 2006
-Car Wash Fundraiser June 3

Hugo

2006-07-01T13:37:00.000-07:00

Hugo called me today and told me how much he misses his good friend Tomas. He told me that he calls Tomas sometimes and he received a call from Johnny the other day. This summer, Hugo is not taking summer school, so he has been spending a lot of time relaxing. He can't wait to go back to school!

We decided that we want to go to bowling and go to the beach this summer.

Hugo says that he misses everybody in his school. He misses Eldon the most. He wishes he can see Eldon soon. He misses his friends Jason, Kevin O Donnell, Mayra, Jade, and David.

Since Hugo and Felix are friends, they visit each other frequently.

I wished Hugo could come over today, but he does not have a car, so I can't wait to see him next time we go out!

2006-06-21T13:08:00.000-07:00

Pictures Below.

The 1st and 2nd picture are of Hugo and Felix when we went shopping on Monday.

3rd picture-Fairmont Park on Memorial Day.

The rest of the pictures are of Hugo during his special day~!

Pictures of Hugo!

2006-06-21T12:55:00.000-07:00

Graduation 6 8 2006

2006-06-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

Hugo has the best smile and it was great to see Becky our program manager there!

Car Wash Pictures

2006-06-19T13:25:00.000-07:00

Extra End of Year Banquet Pictures

2006-06-19T13:10:00.000-07:00

Thank you Thi for emailing me these pictures...

-Anna

New Officers

2006-06-18T15:42:00.000-07:00

Hey!

Aimee Duarte, Andrew Pham, and Karisma Kothari have been successfully voted into their positions!

-Anna

Hello From Anna~!

2006-06-18T15:21:00.000-07:00

Hello! Congratulations to everyone, especially the buddies who graduated, the first year students at UCR who managed to finish their first year of study, and of course the graduates of UCR! This year was a really great year because I feel that I have many memories of Best Buddies that I will never forget. I have gotten close to Hugo and other people in Best Buddies! I know that Kevin will do such a great job next year because he has proven this quarter that he is a leader! The other day Johnny called me after my final and told me that he was at the Special Olympics in San Diego and that he saw Maria Shriver onstage. He is quite lucky..... I really enjoy the buddies' company whenever I come to project TEAM. Everyone gives me hugs~! When I went to the graduation, I surprised Hugo because I told him I wasn't sure that I was going. He was really happy to see me and always tells me that he will never forget me. I will never forget him either! During graduation, Jade walked by me and said, "Hi Anna!" Wow, Jade never really says hi to anyone, but since I have joined Best Buddies, she has really made me feel so special! I thank the buddies who always call me up, like David, Johnny, and Hugo. I hope that next year, Hugo and Tomas can still be a part of Best Buddies even though they have graduated! Since I'm free this summer, I'm planning to hang out with Hugo, Johnny, and Tomas. I'm planning on going to the beach with them. I really love hanging out with the buddies and having Hugo as my Best Buddy because they have given me so many experiences that I haven't experienced before if I wasn't their friend! Hugo means a lot to me and I will keep in touch! I won't forget him anytime soon.....

I will post pictures of the Car Wash and the Best Buddies Graduation soon. I will also send an end of the year email and an officer email soon.

See you at Bear Facts! Best Buddies rocks and you guys rock!~

Anna Nguyen