Fox Lane’s Best Buddies Club Scores for Inclusion

By Chloe Kohl

Fox Lane High School’s second annual Best Buddies Wiffle Ball Game yesterday brought students with and without intellectual disabilities together on the field—laughing, connecting, and cheering each other on in what’s known as a unified game.

For junior Dani Ades, moments like these are what Best Buddies is all about.

She recalled an earlier game—this one on the basketball court—when she and her buddy Celia were having a blast on the bench, despite being down on the scoreboard.

“A song came on and we just started singing together,” Ades said, “completely forgetting about the game.”

That sense of joy and connection is at the heart of Best Buddies, an international program that fosters one-to-one friendships between students with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities—and it’s thriving at Fox Lane.

In addition to the one-on-one relationships, Best Buddies also partners with varsity baseball, basketball, and football teams.

The Wiffle Ball game featured dozens of students showing up with decorated signs, eager to encourage the athletes. An announcer energized the crowd, introducing the players up to bat and letting fans know when the bases were loaded.

After a ceremonial first hit by Assistant Superintendent Amy Fishkin to Best Buddies member and catcher Logan Mammola, both teams were ready to play ball.

“One of my favorite moments was walking onto the field with my buddy and doing the coin toss,” said Mammola, reflecting on an earlier game with the football team.

This year, varsity baseball players and members of Best Buddies were on integrated teams, a change from last year and a way to further build community spirit.

Despite only being in its second year, the club already has ambitions to expand its outreach. Best Buddies hopes to work more closely with the middle and elementary schools to establish these connections at a younger age.

Sasha Rapoport, president of Best Buddies, noted how meaningful the experience has been.

“The baseball team,” Rapoport said, “has a nice sense of family that they truly opened up to the buddies. It was really nice to see.”

Fox Lane’s chapter started last year with only 20 members but has ballooned to about 100 today.

Due to growing interest in the club, each special needs student has been paired with up to four buddies, allowing more friendships to blossom at Fox Lane.

Buddies spend time with each other both in and out of the classroom. Popular activities include painting at the Pottery Factory in Mount Kisco, and browsing books at the local Barnes & Noble.

Culture Change

Jonathan Close, a student in the program, shared that he enjoys bowling and spending time at the arcade with his buddies. And the impact of these relationships has extended beyond the club, helping to reshape the school community, emphasized Jonathan’s mother, Karen Close.

“The program has truly changed the school culture,” she said.

Toni Ann Carey, the director of special education at Fox Lane, couldn’t agree more.

Carey explained how working closely with the athletics department has engaged the wider school community. Fox Lane students attend unified games with posters, ready to cheer on the athletes.

So what’s been the most rewarding aspect of the initiative?

“Seeing how much the work of Best Buddies,” Carey said, “has impacted the school beyond the club.”