Mission
Best Buddies International is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment, leadership development, and inclusive living for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).
Who We Serve
The IDD community that Best Buddies serves includes, but is not limited to, people with Down syndrome, autism, Fragile X, Williams syndrome, cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury and other undiagnosed disabilities.
Programs
Best Buddies is the world’s largest organization dedicated to ending the social, physical and economic isolation of the 200 million people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Our programs empower the special abilities of people with IDD by helping them form meaningful friendships with their peers, secure successful jobs, live independently, improve public speaking, self-advocacy and communication skills, and feel valued by society.
SourceAmerica (formerly NISH), a national nonprofit, is the leading source of job opportunities for a people with significant disabilities. Through our work, we make the American Dream more accessible to a segment of the population where nearly 80% do not have jobs.
Through a nationwide network of more than 550 community nonprofit agency partners, we fulfill contracting needs for the Federal Government, commercial businesses and government contractors.
Our network provides training to people with disabilities, assists them in identifying employment options that most of us take for granted, and then enables them to be successful at work. SourceAmerica is the vital link between jobs and the people who can do them.
It’s Working – more than 125,000 people with significant disabilities are employed through SourceAmerica nonprofit agencies.
How does SourceAmerica make this work?
For our procurement customers, SourceAmerica:
- Markets the capabilities of the products and services delivered by people with significant disabilities
- Creates a partnership to ensure quality and satisfaction meets expectations
- Connects the procurement opportunity with the most qualified nonprofit agency
- Provides dedicated customer service
- Includes third party management and collaboration on the statement of work
- Offers competitive pricing
- Supports all aspects of contracting which reduces customer time requirements
For our nonprofit agencies, SourceAmerica provides:
- Legislative representation and regulatory assistance
- Communications and marketing outreach
- Information technology expertise
- Engineering and technical support
- Comprehensive professional training
- Research and development projects
- Grants and financial assistance
For people with disabilities, SourceAmerica created the Institute for Economic Empowerment to conduct research, demonstration, and develop projects to make important progress toward the strategic goal of full and fair employment for individuals with significant disabilities, particularly those facing the most significant disability-related barriers to employment.