Growing up as a kid with several mental disorders, I knew what exclusion felt like. The feeling is one of the worst in the world.
At Best Buddies, we strive to break that norm and include all, whether it be a big off-campus event or just a simple after school activity.
Best Buddies as an organization is a nonprofit that goes beyond inclusion. It aids people living with IDD, or intellectual developmental disabilities, providing them with friendships, jobs, travel, and even living opportunities.
As for myself, I have attended the Leadership Conference at Indiana University three times and have always witnessed inclusion, along with feeling it in every room.
In Lincoln, especially at the high school level, many of my peers with IDD struggle with school. They struggle with social events, academics, and even certain sports. Best Buddies at Lincoln High School works with these students, providing them friendships and social activities to make high school more of a comfortable environment.
We work with the Unified Sports department, Daves Fresh Marketplace, and our culinary program for many of our fundraisers. With the raised funds, we put together many events on and off campus to help make the world more inclusive. As my third and final term as my chapter’s president begins, I encourage all across the world to make the world a better place.
Our goal for Best Buddies is to ensure nothing like it needs to exist ever again. Go out, include, encourage, and inspire! And if you ever see exclusion happen around you, speak up and speak loud!
Christiaan Pina, 17 years old and a senior at Lincoln High School, attends, manages, and participates in many school activities. He will be sharing a student’s perspective for The Local Insider this year.
Pina was a founder of a mental health awareness club called Kyle Cares, has been his Best Buddies chapter president for the last three years, and has participated in many unified sports games such as volleyball and basketball.
Pina was born in Providence and now lives in Lincoln, which he said is his home because it’s been the most welcome and comfortable community he has ever been a part of.
Pina has worked with elementary and middle schools across the district to aid their programs. He is in a culinary CTE program, leading into his potential career as a baking and pastry chef.
He is the eighth in a lineup of nine children. His family is very involved when it comes to Best Buddies and their academics. His parents, Christopher and Ana Pina, he said, are amazing parents and have aided him and his journey for the past 17 years.
“I aim to be a positive yet realistic person, allowing people to feel loved and cherished at all times possible,” he says.
