A Colorado College club seeks to establish and foster relationships between CC students and individuals in the Colorado Springs community who have intellectual and developmental disabilities.

“We aim to foster community and connection through inclusive events and one-on-one friendships,” says Natasha Jaddock ’24, who is the co-chair of the club. “We are always looking for students to join our Best Buddies family and hang out, play games, and take a break from the hustle and bustle of the Block Plan.”

Pairings are usually made between an individual, referred to as a buddy, and a student during the student’s first year at CC and are continued until the student graduates or beyond. Most students continue their relationship with their buddy past their time at CC, Jaddock says.

Best Buddies is an international organization, so many people who are familiar with intellectual and developmental disabilities are familiar with Best Buddies and seek out a Best Buddies club in their area. CC’s Best Buddies club is the Best Buddies club in Colorado Springs. To ensure everyone’s safety, Best Buddies asks that when pairings meet in person, they always have at least one other person with them, which is sometimes a parent or another CC student who is a member of the club.

The club hosts blockly events for buddies and CC students, such as pumpkin carving, bowling, and movie nights. Students can join Best Buddies and opt to just participate in these blockly events, or students can choose to be paired with a buddy.

Best Buddies meets as a whole once per block, and students who are paired with a buddy are expected to stay in touch with their buddy outside of the blockly events, including through texting or hanging out together. Students who are part of a pairing should plan to commit at least six hours per block to their buddy, in addition to the blockly events.

“I think it's powerful to be able to connect with families in the Colorado Springs community,” says Jaddock.

All students are welcome to join Best Buddies at any point.

“Even if you aren't able to commit the time to having a dedicated buddy, we are more than happy to have tons of CC students show up to our blockly get togethers,” says Jaddock. “The more the merrier.”

Students interested in joining the Best Buddies club can reach out to Natasha Jaddock at n_jaddock@coloradocollege.edu.