School Friendship Programs

Welcome to 2022!

Welcome Back Best Buddies Family! Happy New Year 2022! We hope that you enjoyed the holidays safely with family and friends. BBHI is ready to get the year started with fun and inclusive activities, opportunities to lead as an ambassador, and a plan to get everyone – whether you are in a friendship program, an ambassador, or a Citizens member – ready to share the mission of inclusion.

Did you have a chance to see Ian and Rohan from our University of Hawaii-Manoa chapter (pictured above) featured on Best Buddies International's nationwide campaign? We're so grateful to them for telling their story to Best Buddies participants and families all across the country.

Back to Best Buddies Event
Friday, January 21, 5-7 pm

REGISTER NOW

We're inviting you to join us, Friday, January 21, from 5-7 pm via Zoom for our Back to Best Buddies event. Register above to be entered to win some Best Buddies swag. BBHI staff will host an event that focuses on understanding the Best Buddies organization and mission, upcoming events, an overview of the expectations, commitment, and opportunities available with each program, and a fun KAHOOT! Game.

Best Buddies in Hawai'i continue to offer virtual opportunities, but we encourage our schools to meet at least once a month for a lunch bunch or another activity. If you want to share the awesome work you're doing to spread inclusion in your school or community, email hawaii@bestbuddies.org. Miss Liz and Aunty Kathy will be reaching out to each school to check in with student leadership about your current program status and plans for the new year.

Maui Mall Village

Mahalo nui loa to Maui Mall Village, and to Advisory Board member Brian Yano who made the introduction, for running a monthlong campaign to benefit Best Buddies in Hawai'i! Visitors to the mall were able to take photos with Santa after donating to BBHI, and local buddy pairs shared information about our programs and our mission of inclusion.

Together we raised $1,000, and Maui Mall Village will generously match that amount!

Membership Applications Open

Membership for the 2021-2022 school year is NOW OPEN, and participants for all friendship programs need to apply. We have moved to a more user-friendly online platform called BB360!

If you have any questions, please reach out to your program staff to help you through the process at hawaii@bestbuddies.org.

Save the Date

Best Buddies Friendship Walk
Saturday, May 7, 2022

Can you believe it?? It's time to start planning the 2022 Friendship Walk. Learn more about registering, building your team, and fundraising at the Back to Best Buddies event on January 21, or email us at hawaii@bestbuddies.org.

The Best Buddies Friendship Walk is the leading walk in the country supporting inclusion for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), and we want you to join us to walk for inclusion!

Best Buddies Citizens

Best Buddies Citizen programs on O'ahu and Maui were opened in March 2021 and hosted virtually and in-person monthly activities for members. These programs are the first of their kind in Hawai'i, and we are looking for more adults 18+years with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities to join. Our participants are full of life and are looking for a match. We will focus on matching in the spring!

If you or anyone you know may be interested, please contact the BBHI staff. We look forward to sharing more about the program with you. For more information, contact Elizabeth Mahoe on O'ahu at elizabethmahoe@bestbuddies.org or Kathy Bettencourt on Maui at kathybettencourt@bestbuddies.org.

Next Citizens Meet Ups for both O'ahu and Maui: Saturday, January 15 (Time and Place TBD)

Half-Hour Heroes

As many of you know, BBHI runs a virtual program called Half-Hour Heroes on Wednesday afternoons (except for the first Wednesday of the month). Our Half-Hour Heroes are community members, with or without disabilities, who share something they are passionate about (a hobby, their job, etc.) and then take questions from the audience.

We always appreciate how our community members are connected to Best Buddies. If you know of anyone we should invite to share their story, please let us know at hawaii@bestbuddies.org.

Upcoming Ambassador Training

Advocating for the Mission
Wednesday, January 12
4–5 pm on Zoom
RSVP NOW

Our next monthly training will be on Wednesday, January 12, from 4–5 pm HST via zoom. The training will focus on inviting the community to participate in our mission by joining our programs and events.

Upcoming Events

Are you a member looking for more ways to stay connected with Best Buddies in Hawai'i? Check out the January calendar for awesome opportunities to join the staff and other members from across the state as they enjoy fun get-togethers and learn how to become leaders in the community.

Ambassador Training
First Wednesday of each
4–5 pm on Zoom
hawaii@bestbuddies.org

Friendship Activities
Every Thursday
4–5 pm on Zoom
RSVP NOW

All events will take place on Zoom. To attend, RSVP above to receive the link. Should you have any questions, contact hawaii@bestbuddies.org.