Bulldog Buddies is a school program originally organized and managed by the Key Club in 2021 to connect with Independence Hall students. Remaining today as one of the most unknown Chelsea programs, the perseverance of the program emphasizes the close connections that can be made when students share their time and kindness with others.
Although Bulldog Buddies has been around for two years now, many students and faculty in Chelsea are unaware of its existence. The program runs once a week on Tuesdays during the Bulldog Block period, and Key Club members are invited to participate in activities, play games, and assist with Independence Hall projects, such as the recent Holiday Boutique.
“Bulldog Buddies is something that we participate in with Key Club– it’s for members of Key Club or friends of members in Key Club,” senior and Key Club’s Independence Hall Liaison Meghan Bareis said. “Bulldog Buddies consists of going to Independence Hall, which is a classroom and space for kids who are multi-functionally disabled and need or struggle with life skills. Every Tuesday during Bulldog block, a group of Key Club members and others will go down to Independence Hall. We will play games, chat, and just spend quality time with those students who don’t get a lot of outside interaction with everyday students.”
The concept of the program was both created and managed by Bareis in her sophomore year. The Vice-President of Key Club, she has also been serving as Key Club’s Independence Hall Liason since her junior year when the Bulldog Buddies program started becoming more popular in the club. To her, however, it had always been less of a project and more of a labor of love that began, simply, with wanting to spend more time with her younger brother, Grant.
“It originated my sophomore year,” Bareis said. “I have a brother in the program, and I wanted to see him more regularly. I thought that maybe I could bring some friends and talk to the other students because a lot of the time they’re very isolated with just each other. I thought having some more people interact with them would be beneficial. And that’s just kind of how it originated.”
Because the students at Independence Hall largely stay within Independence Hall for their primary classes, there aren’t many chances beyond lunchtime to connect with the larger CHS community. However, as more people in Key Club have joined and attended Bulldog Buddies meetings, Independence Hall students have had reliable, weekly opportunities to interact with many different students at CHS that they regularly wouldn’t get the chance to talk to. Independence Hall student Jackson Warriner is one of the many students who has enjoyed the company over the past two years.
“The one thing I really like about Bulldog Buddies is that it’s good to get to know people I don’t know,” Warriner said. “Like, there are two people who come and they’re both boys. I really don’t know them that well, but they look cool and I like meeting them. So, it’s cool to meet new people.”
Yet, for the Key Club members who have been attending Bulldog Buddies regularly, like Bareis, these connections are not limited to the half-hour block on Tuesdays but can form genuine connections outside of the classroom as well.
“These students have become very attached to the program, and they’re always waiting for the next Tuesday,” Bareis said. “It’s something they look forward to. And they’ll come to my sporting events, and it’s created a really nice bond. I know it also definitely has been improving their interactive skills and people skills.”
To some students, like Warriner, Bulldog Buddies is even their favorite part of the week as a whole. Relaxing, playing games, and getting to talk with their Key Club friends have become something intrinsically important in their school lives. To Warriner, time spent with Key Club during Bulldog Block is a source of immense gratitude.
“One thing about Bulldog Buddies that I really like, and my favorite thing about being at the Chelsea High School, is probably taking time off doing classwork, having fun, and playing Bulldog Block games,” Warriner said. “And it’s really nice of the Bulldog Buddies to take time out of the day to come be with us. It’s really nice. They don’t have to do that, but they’re being nice and kind and taking time out of the day to be with us and play games and talk.”
To Bareis, though, Bulldog Buddies isn’t about charity at all. She expresses that she has stayed with her program so long, even though it may not be widely known by the school at large, because of her genuine passion and intention to make her school a kinder, more understanding place to be for all students.
“It’s so important to me because I have seen a lot of stigma and discrimination against a lot of kids,” Bareis said. “I want to make sure that people who do have special needs are more properly not just cared about, but welcomed in a school that sometimes isolates them or sets them aside. I’ve always had a passion for helping others, especially growing up with my brother, Grant. I don’t want people to feel alone.”
