{"id":168189,"date":"2022-09-30T18:31:03","date_gmt":"2022-09-30T22:31:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/?page_id=168189"},"modified":"2022-09-30T19:01:03","modified_gmt":"2022-09-30T23:01:03","slug":"ian-and-rohan","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/what-we-do\/featured-profiles\/ian-and-rohan\/","title":{"rendered":"Ian and Rohan"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\">[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]\n<h1><span style=\"color: #5a3f98;\">Featured Profile<\/span><\/h1>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_custom_heading text=&#8221;<strong>Ian and Rohan<\/strong>&#8221; font_container=&#8221;tag:h4|font_size:20px|text_align:left|line_height:22px&#8221; use_theme_fonts=&#8221;yes&#8221;][vc_custom_heading text=&#8221;Friendship Program Participants in Hawai&#8217;i&#8221; font_container=&#8221;tag:h4|font_size:20px|text_align:left|line_height:22px&#8221; use_theme_fonts=&#8221;yes&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1664578844250{margin-top: -10px !important;}&#8221;][vc_separator color=&#8221;custom&#8221; align=&#8221;align_left&#8221; border_width=&#8221;8&#8243; accent_color=&#8221;#ffd51d&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1664577323537{margin-top: -20px !important;border-top-width: -20px !important;padding-top: -30px !important;}&#8221;]<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-168182 bb-image\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/2022-Friendship-Pillar-v2.webp\" alt=\"Best Buddies Friendship participants, Ian &amp; Rohan.\" width=\"555\" height=\"453\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/2022-Friendship-Pillar-v2.webp 600w, https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/2022-Friendship-Pillar-v2-150x123.webp 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 555px) 100vw, 555px\" \/>Ian Kahalewai, 22, first heard about Best Buddies in 2018 during his senior year of high school and when he graduated, his mom reached out to Best Buddies in Hawaii staff to see how Ian could join the friendship program. Ian attended a meet-and-greet party at the University of Hawai\u02bbi at M\u0101noa campus and became a member. Since then, he has developed the confidence to be himself, and credits his best friend and buddy, Rohan Sridharan. The two have been matched since 2018 and although the pandemic has kept them from seeing each other often, they still text and FaceTime often.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;When I was young, I told my parents I would never make any friends. Then, along came Rohan. We\u2019ve been best buddies ever since! His friendship has impacted me so much. He&#8217;s been there for me and supports me and all the people and things I love.&#8221; \u2013 Ian<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHaving a friend like Rohan has changed my life,\u201d says Ian. \u201cHe likes a lot of the same things that I like, such as playing basketball. I have learned how to cook, gotten better at math and I am appreciative of Rohan for introducing me to his sister, brother, and his college friends.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s hard to remember that Ian and I met through Best Buddies because it feels like we have always been friends,\u201d says Rohan. \u201cWhen I joined Best Buddies and matched with Ian, I knew we would be great friends because we\u2019re close in age, kind of look alike (everyone keeps asking if we\u2019re brothers), and like the same kinds of things.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ian and Rohan&#8217;s connection is rooted in shared interests and grows stronger every year. They love cooking together, going to sporting events, and celebrating Ian&#8217;s favorite holiday \u2013 Halloween!<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0\u201c<\/strong>We transcend the mission of Best Buddies,\u201d says Rohan. \u201cI think of Ian as my third sibling. He has gotten to know my friends and family and now he works with my sister at the Department of Health to practice social skills and learn how to navigate within the community. I am thankful for Sandy and Danny (Ian\u2019s parents) because they are so supportive of our friendship and welcomed me into their home. I don\u2019t have a lot of family here, so having Ian really has helped me, too. Although I am a senior this year, Ian and I will always remain friends and I plan to stay in Hawai\u2019i and create more memories with him.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/what-we-do\/featured-profiles\/\" target=\"_self\"><i class=\"hb-moon-arrow-left-6 hb-icon-float-left hb-icon-small hb-icon\" style=\"color:#ffd33b\"><\/i><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/what-we-do\/featured-profiles\/\">More Profiles<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Featured Profile [\/vc_column_text][vc_custom_heading text=&#8221;Ian and Rohan&#8221; font_container=&#8221;tag:h4|font_size:20px|text_align:left|line_height:22px&#8221; use_theme_fonts=&#8221;yes&#8221;][vc_custom_heading text=&#8221;Friendship Program Participants in Hawai&#8217;i&#8221; font_container=&#8221;tag:h4|font_size:20px|text_align:left|line_height:22px&#8221; use_theme_fonts=&#8221;yes&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1664578844250{margin-top: -10px !important;}&#8221;][vc_separator color=&#8221;custom&#8221; align=&#8221;align_left&#8221; border_width=&#8221;8&#8243; accent_color=&#8221;#ffd51d&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1664577323537{margin-top: -20px !important;border-top-width: -20px !important;padding-top: -30px !important;}&#8221;]Ian Kahalewai, 22, first heard about Best Buddies in 2018 during his senior year of high school and when he graduated, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":168187,"parent":4015,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-168189","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.1 - 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