{"id":180611,"date":"2024-04-29T14:48:37","date_gmt":"2024-04-29T18:48:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/?p=180611"},"modified":"2024-04-29T14:48:37","modified_gmt":"2024-04-29T18:48:37","slug":"best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story","title":{"rendered":"Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\">[vc_row][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/6&#8243;][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;2\/3&#8243;][vc_single_image image=&#8221;180614&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221;][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;15px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Best Buddies Leadership Development programs represent one of our organization\u2019s five key mission pillars. The programs educate and empower people with and without IDD to become leaders, public speakers, and advocates. Best Buddies passionately believes that its program participants can lead the effort within their community and beyond to build a more inclusive world for people with IDD.<\/p>\n<p>The Best Buddies Ambassadors program offers people with and without IDD the opportunity to gain the public speaking skills, self-esteem and confidence needed to successfully advocate for themselves, their peers, and Best Buddies in communities, workplaces and government. Michael Mortensen is a Best Buddies New York State Ambassador.<\/p>\n<p>Check out Michael\u2019s story in his own words below.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHi, my name is Michael Mortensen. I\u2019m 26 years old and am currently a Best Buddies Ambassador and part of the Friendship Program at the College of Saint Rose in Albany. I have been involved in Best Buddies since 2011 &#8211; almost half of my life!<\/p>\n<p>Before I became part of Best Buddies, I didn\u2019t have many friends and felt left out. This all changed when I joined Best Buddies in my first year at Garden City High School. I realized that Best Buddies was a place where I could feel comfortable and where my disabilities didn\u2019t define how others treated me. The advisors and students were all committed to the Best Buddies mission of inclusion, and I made many new friends. We did fun activities and discussed upcoming events like the Friendship Walk at our after-school meetings. I\u2019d also see my buddies outside of school, and we would have fun bowling, going out to eat, going to the movies, or just hanging out.<\/p>\n<p>Mrs. Kear was my Best Buddies advisor in high school. She encouraged me to become an advocate by attending an Ambassador workshop on Long Island, where I participated in a speech writing and presentation class. She also encouraged me to attend the 2016 Best Buddies International Leadership Conference (BBLC) in Indiana. I was the first student with a disability from my high school to attend BBLC, and I loved it! BBLC is a life changing weekend, where people from chapters all over the world get together to discuss ways to spread the Best Buddies mission and to participate in many fun events. My chapter\u2019s president, Caroline, and I gave a speech about our experiences in Best Buddies. We introduced Anthony Shriver, who is the founder of Best Buddies, to everybody who attended BBLC. Before I joined Best Buddies, I could have never imagined speaking in front of so many people at an event like that!<\/p>\n<p>After I graduated from high school in 2016, I continued my involvement with Best Buddies by fundraising for and attending the Friendship Walks and the Champion of the Year events on Long Island.<\/p>\n<p>In 2018, I moved to Albany to attend a program for young adults with disabilities at The College of Saint Rose. I was so glad to learn that they had a Best Buddies chapter to join! I made new friends, was able to continue my advocacy, and became a Best Buddies New York State Ambassador. In 2020, I had the opportunity to meet with NY State senators via Zoom to talk about my experiences in Best Buddies. I recently participated in a \u201cLunch &amp; Learn\u201d Zoom meeting with corporate partners focused on diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, and I shared more about my personal experience. Later this summer, I\u2019ll be attending the Best Buddies Leadership Conference in Indiana for the fifth time!<\/p>\n<p>Best Buddies is such a wonderful organization and has had a profound impact on my life and the lives of many others. It\u2019s given me long lasting friendships, a feeling of belonging, and has boosted my confidence immeasurably. I am proud to be an advocate for Best Buddies. It\u2019s so important to raise awareness of Best Buddies and the great impact it has in making the world more welcoming to people with disabilities, to spread the life-changing message of inclusion for ALL people, including those with disabilities.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/6&#8243;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;I am proud to be an advocate for Best Buddies.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2080,"featured_media":180614,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"ny-single-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[495],"tags":[562],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story - Best Buddies International<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story - Best Buddies International\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"&quot;I am proud to be an advocate for Best Buddies.&quot;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Best Buddies International\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-04-29T18:48:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/2024-BBNY-Michael-Ambassador.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"leemosler\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"leemosler\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"leemosler\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#\/schema\/person\/e016e3c8c2cd3b7e04adf72b23efb560\"},\"headline\":\"Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-04-29T18:48:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-04-29T18:48:37+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/\"},\"wordCount\":736,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/2024-BBNY-Michael-Ambassador.webp\",\"keywords\":[\"New York News\"],\"articleSection\":[\"New York News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/\",\"name\":\"Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story - Best Buddies International\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/2024-BBNY-Michael-Ambassador.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-04-29T18:48:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-04-29T18:48:37+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/2024-BBNY-Michael-Ambassador.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/2024-BBNY-Michael-Ambassador.webp\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":630,\"caption\":\"Michael Ambassador\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/\",\"name\":\"Best Buddies International\",\"description\":\"Best Buddies is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment, and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Best Buddies International\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/best-buddies-logo2.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/best-buddies-logo2.png\",\"width\":115,\"height\":113,\"caption\":\"Best Buddies International\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#\/schema\/person\/e016e3c8c2cd3b7e04adf72b23efb560\",\"name\":\"leemosler\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/author\/leemosler\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story - Best Buddies International","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story - Best Buddies International","og_description":"\"I am proud to be an advocate for Best Buddies.\"","og_url":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/","og_site_name":"Best Buddies International","article_published_time":"2024-04-29T18:48:37+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":630,"url":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/2024-BBNY-Michael-Ambassador.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"leemosler","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"leemosler","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/"},"author":{"name":"leemosler","@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#\/schema\/person\/e016e3c8c2cd3b7e04adf72b23efb560"},"headline":"Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story","datePublished":"2024-04-29T18:48:37+00:00","dateModified":"2024-04-29T18:48:37+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/"},"wordCount":736,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/2024-BBNY-Michael-Ambassador.webp","keywords":["New York News"],"articleSection":["New York News"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/","url":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/","name":"Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story - Best Buddies International","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/2024-BBNY-Michael-Ambassador.webp","datePublished":"2024-04-29T18:48:37+00:00","dateModified":"2024-04-29T18:48:37+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/2024-BBNY-Michael-Ambassador.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/2024-BBNY-Michael-Ambassador.webp","width":1200,"height":630,"caption":"Michael Ambassador"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/newyork\/best-buddies-ambassadors-michaels-story\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Best Buddies Ambassadors: Michael\u2019s Story"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/","name":"Best Buddies International","description":"Best Buddies is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment, and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#organization","name":"Best Buddies International","url":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/best-buddies-logo2.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/best-buddies-logo2.png","width":115,"height":113,"caption":"Best Buddies International"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/#\/schema\/person\/e016e3c8c2cd3b7e04adf72b23efb560","name":"leemosler","url":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/author\/leemosler\/"}]}},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":true,"date":"2027-05-01 14:45:00","action":"delete","newStatus":"draft","terms":[0],"taxonomy":"category"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180611"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2080"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=180611"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180611\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":180615,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180611\/revisions\/180615"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/180614"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=180611"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=180611"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=180611"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}