Tuscaloosa Man in Fundraising Contest for Alabama's Best Buddies

A Tuscaloosa man is raising money for a nonprofit that changed his life and helps countless others as he competes to become their top fundraiser in Alabama.

The Best Buddies organization was incorporated in 1989 at Georgetown University by Anthony Kennedy Striver and seeks to provide meaningful friendships, connections and opportunities for people living with intellectual disabilities.

Grace Ann Maughan, the director of mission advancement for Best Buddies in Alabama, said the program pairs students who face disabilities with "Buddies." Although the organization started with college students, it has grown to include children in both elementary and high schools across the world.

They're not the only nonprofit that aims to create lifelong companions for children, but Maughan said the pairings are all peer-to-peer, helping form critical same-age friendships which could be difficult for Buddies to form without the program.

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Alabama's Best Buddies is growing fast. They first arrived at Auburn University in the mid-90s before spreading to the University of Alabama a few years later. Those chapters sat somewhat dormant until 2021 when the Alabama organization really began trying to grow and get into as many schools as possible.

Maughan said she started as a volunteer at UA and fell in love with the program and stuck with it after graduation until the state organization had raised enough money to hire a staff member and she became its full-time leader.

She said Best Buddies has thrived in Tuscaloosa, where the city school board has welcomed them into all its schools.

Now, the organization is in the middle of its largest annual fundraising campaign, trying to raise $120,000 - more than twice the total donated in 2023.

Across the state, Champions are competing to raise the most money for Best Buddies, and Tuscaloosa's Ian Terry is among them, alongside names like Miss Alabama 2024 Abbie Stockard and basically the entire Smuckers plant in McCalla.

The Champions have until November 7th to encourage as many donations as possible, and the results will be announced that night at a gala in Birmingham.

"King" Ian Terry is a Tuscaloosa native who is both a product of and a teacher's assistant at the Rise Center at The University of Alabama, which equips infants and preschoolers with varying abilities to succeed later in life.

Ian Terry's mother, Teri, said her son is a very social person who has benefitted from the kindness of others and wants to use this platform to give back.

"Ian's passion is helping to build Best Buddies to be the best it can be because it's brought him a lot of joy and introduced him to so many wonderful people," she said.

Later today, Tuesday, October 29th, the Terrys will be at Central Mesa on Greensboro Avenue in downtown Tuscaloosa for a percentage-sharing night - a portion of all money earned at the restaurant from 4 p.m. until 9 p.m. will go to his Best Buddies campaign.

"Ian's motto is 'Dare to Dream,' and he has dreamed his whole life. He has had so many opportunities and so many doors have been opened for him in this community," Terry said. "Tuscaloosa is a great place to live and they seem to be so acceptant."

The community can come out and support Ian while enjoying great food and drinks at Central Mesa this evening, or those who can't make it can learn more about the campaign and donate online.