Dec. 9—For students at Lyndon Baines Johnson Middle School who are members of Best Buddies, the message is this: you will always have a seat at the table, whether you have a disability or not.
Every Wednesday, past and present members of Best Buddies meet in the cafeteria for lunch. Sherri Blowers, a special education teacher at LBJ who leads the school’s Best Buddies chapter, encourages each student to invite a new student to lunch even if they’ve never served in the program, which pairs volunteers with a person who has an intellectual disability, referred to as a “buddy.” The pairings lead to mentorship — and sometimes lifelong friendships — between the individuals.
“Each week, we could get five extra kids to sit and break the stigma of Best Buddies,” Blowers said. “The world is made of all different people, and learning about that in middle school is important. They’re going to have friends in every class that are not looking like them, acting like them, having the same needs they have. But they’re human; they need friends.”
In October, the middle school received an outstanding chapter recognition from Best Buddies International, according to an Albuquerque Public Schools news release, which cited a letter from Best Buddies Senior Vice President David Quilleon. The middle school holds the distinction as the only school in APS to receive this recognition.
“The strong student leadership, faculty support and community connections driving the chapter (are) helping to pave the way toward total inclusion for individuals with intellectual disabilities,” Quilleon wrote in his letter. “The Lyndon B. Johnson Middle School chapter went above and beyond in each of these areas, truly living the mission of Best Buddies.”
BBI is a nonprofit organization founded in 1989 by Anthony Kennedy Shriver, the nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy. LBJ Middle School officials accepted the award for outstanding chapter and posed for photos with Shriver during the Best Buddies annual conference in July at Indiana University in Bloomington, according to Nicole Maddox, vice president of communications for BBI. The nonprofit also named outstanding chapters of a high school, college or university, and top promoter chapter (community based, non-school Best Buddies chapter).
Founded in Fall 2016, the LBJ Middle School chapter is in its ninth year with support from Best Buddies in New Mexico. Martha Mondragon-Guerin, lead program manager for community engagement with Albuquerque Best Buddies of New Mexico, nominated LBJ for outstanding chapter.
“We’re looking for someone that meets the basic standards of providing inclusion activities in the school and goes above and beyond in some of their state participation, which is what LBJ does,” Mondragon-Guerin said. “They’re one of the most inclusive chapters.”
Blowers’ oversight of regular Best Buddies activities, keeping the chapter going through the pandemic and her overall passion for the program were other reasons Best Buddies of New Mexico nominated the middle school.
“She is so great with those students,” Mondragon-Guerin said.
Mondragon-Guerin noted how comfortable the students were around each other at LBJ Middle School. That was evident recently as they gathered for lunch over chili with cheddar cheese and a green apple.
They didn’t just eat. They talked, utilizing “discussion starters” organized by Blowers. Among them, “If you could change one thing about yourself,” what would it be? Another: “What’s your favorite class in school?”
Thomas Joey Howell, a seventh grader on the autism spectrum who was proud to wear his Best Buddies shirt, said making friends is what he likes most about the program and “makes me feel 10 times (more) happy.”
A traditional seventh grade student, Noah Medina, is not part of Best Buddies, but is a regular among the group with disabilities at their lunch table every Wednesday. Medina loves meeting and “including” new people.
“(Having friends with disabilities) adds to my life,” Medina said. “These students are real people.”
Blowers believes traditional students have the potential to get more out of the Best Buddies program than those with disabilities.
“Sometimes the (general education) kids … don’t use their skills because they’re hanging around just (general education) people,” she said. “But when they hang around (intellectual or developmental disabilities) people, the (general education) population, they see that you learn from each other, and you help each other. It’s a real big-picture thing. It’s a life skill that they need to take into adulthood.”
A year before the middle school started a chapter, its families participated in the annual Best Buddies Friendship Walk in April at Albuquerque Academy, according to Blowers. For the past three years, LBJ has been the top fundraising school for this event in the state, Blowers said. All proceeds from the walk go to the state’s Best Buddies arm.
The fundraiser and lunch periods aren’t the only get-together periods with the chapter. It also brings together the Best Buddies for “family meetings” once a month. At its most recent meeting on Nov. 20, families heard from Kiontis Gallion, known as “Kid Autistic,” a state ambassador for Best Buddies Wisconsin.
Brett-Morgan Nielsen, program manager with Best Buddies in New Mexico, who assisted in nominating LBJ Middle School for the chapter award, praised the chapter for its efforts.
“What I love about that chapter and those students is that they’re never secure in their comfort zone — they’re always pushing themselves to make new friends, and they truly want everyone else in their school to be doing that at the same time,” Nielsen said. “That’s amazing.”