USD Magazine, Spring 1993

Junior Meaghan Russell and her "Bes t Buclcly" Jeffrey meet on the USO campus.

was expected to go to school, work and succeed at daily living skills such as using the bus, she now lives and works on her own. "My grandfather thought, 'If you're a Russell, you're going to do it the Russell way,'" Meaghan says. "I think he gave my aunt the best life she could have had." Meaghan continues that Russell spir– it in the Best Buddies project. She and her buddy, Jeffrey*, do the same things that all friends do - go to the movies, to a basketball game, just "hang out,'' Meaghan says. At a Best Buddies Hal– loween dance last year, Jeffrey, an out– going 20-year-old with a million-dollar smile, showed off his Moonwalk and entertained everyone as deejay. In fact, Meaghan says there is noth– ing out-of-the-ordinary about their rela– tionship. "It's a friendship,'' she says. "He's really special to me. He makes me laugh. I just enjoy being in his compa– ny." Jeffrey lives in a group home with other mentally challenged adults and two supervisors in a San Diego neigh– borhood. He goes to Kearny High School, has two jobs - at Sea World and at USD in the main dining room - and he works out at the YMCA. Out one evening for dinner, Meaghan and Jeffrey talk easily, moving quickly from one topic to another - food, roommates, work, family, movies, music, chance encounters with the rich and famous (Meaghan's with musician Sting), you name it. Meaghan peppers

That real-world education begins with the first volunteering experience, no matter how early. Junior Meaghan Rus– sell, who has volunteered as long as she can remember, learned in the eighth grade how a very simple gesture can pro– foundly affect someone else's life. "I was a buddy with this lady; I think she was in her 90s," Meaghan recalls. "She came to our grade school once and I walked around with her all day. She was in a wheelchair, but she tried to be pretty active. I wrote her a couple of letters after that, little things like a Christmas card and I think a birthday card. She passed away, and her family sent me a letter saying 'thank you' for being her friend. I guess she talked about me a lot." Pausing briefly, her eyes opened wide, "I only met her that one time." Meaghan is a volunteer for USD's Best Buddies project, in which USD students are matched with developmen– tally delayed students in the community. The buddies get together at least twice a month for an academic year. Meaghan had very personal reasons for getting involved in this program. Her aunt is mentally challenged but, because she

the conversation with questions and Jef– frey answers each carefully while he slowly but methodically empties his tray, often breaking into laughter over some– thing she has said. The two friends are looking forward to this summer when each might be going to Florida for a national Best Bud– dies conference. The conference is for the program coordinators, from both the college student side and the buddy side. Meaghan will be a project coordinator for the USD volunteers next year and Jeffrey has been selected to coordinate the buddy participants. In the meantime, however, they enjoy the time they spend just "hanging out." As USD student leaders look to the future of volunteering at USD, they embrace the concept of advocacy. "Ser– vice, a lot of the time, is a Band-Aid when you need stitches," explains Jason Orlando, a two-year USD volunteer and newly elected AS vice president of pro– gramming. "When you are serving the community, you're doing things to help out the situation by volunteering the

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