Lifelong friendship inspires local high school student to take action

Bloomington High School South sophomores Katie Heeter and Alex Rice can’t imagine a time when they weren’t friends.

“I’m pretty sure we have pictures from every single year doing anything,” Heeter said.
By “anything” she means activities any typical duo would do — exploring pumpkin patches during a cool autumn day, dressing up in ridiculous costumes for trick-or-treating in October or simply goofing around.

Yet their friendship is anything but ordinary.

As a baby, Alex was diagnosed with an intellectual and developmental
disability.

Through the years, Heeter said she has witnessed discrimination against people like Rice. The hatred didn’t sit well with her.

“I have seen, not just within our school, but within our community, (others) not including people with developmental disabilities, making fun of them, using the r-word, and I know it’s not right,” she said.

Her solution was to form a branch of Best Buddies at her high school. Best Buddies is a nonprofit program which pairs a student who has a developmental disability with another student to form a one-to-one friendship.

“Alex and his mom kind of brought it up to me last year, about wanting to start a chapter and, obviously, being his best friend since forever, I thought it was a good idea,” Heeter said.

She went to Best Buddies Indiana in Indianapolis to initiate a branch at BHSS,  but her request was waitlisted due to a deficit in Best Buddy personnel for the amount of programs in the state.

“We had to wait until they closed a chapter where we would have an opening,” Heeter said. “Toward the end of the school year last year they closed a chapter, and we were next up.”

Heeter has planned for a call-out meeting on Sept. 22. There will be a match party to follow where intellectually or developmentally disabled students will be paired with other students at BHSS.

She said the pairs are required to contact each other at least once a week and spend time together at least twice a month.

However, she said most pairs contact each other several times a day and hang out more than what is required of them — like any other friendship.

“The people who join obviously aren’t going to discriminate against someone, so you just start from the basics — talk to them and learn what they like and what you like and just go out together like any normal friendship would,” Heeter said.

The chapter at BHSS will fundraise and host events, such as the annual March campaign called Spread the Word to End the Word and the Friendship Walk in April, Heeter said.

“It’s important, I think, because people with disabilities are widening their social circle. They’re meeting friends,” said Sarah Baldini, state director of Best Buddies Indiana.
“Not only are they doing things that are fun and recreational, (but) they’re also learning appropriate social behaviors so once they do get out of high school, they can hold a job and be able to interact with individuals.”

For Rice, the beginning of this chapter signifies a chance for others to experience what he has had his entire life.

“I hope that everyone can develop a special bond with a buddy and treat them equally,” Rice said. 

Having a buddy doesn’t just have a influence on the student with the intellectual or developmental disability, Heeter said. Heeter said she has been so grateful to have Rice in her life as well.

“He’s always happy and upbeat, no matter what,” she said.