Building an inclusive world
MOD + Best Buddies: Creating Opportunities For All
Our Best Buddies Partnership
At MOD, making a positive social impact is part of our mission. We give people fresh starts, second chances, and the opportunity to thrive.
Approximately 81% of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) don’t have a paid job in the community*. MOD has hired over 300 employees with IDD in our stores nationwide. By partnering with Best Buddies, which creates opportunities for employment, friendship, leadership development, and inclusive living for individuals with IDD, more talented and dedicated people will get a chance to join the MOD Squad.
Read their stories. Support our efforts. And help us spread MODness to everyone.
Inclusion, opportunity, and people first
Meet outstanding members of our MOD squad with Intellectual and developmental disabilities
Jeffrey
Jeff has a cat named Epic, which is fitting, because Jeff is epic too. He even has a pizza named after him, which makes him feel like a celebrity walking a red carpet of tomato sauce. When he hears someone order it, it’s as if he’s being asked for his autograph. Jeff loves sharing a piece of himself. Since learning he can nourish others, his proudest moment is every day. Jeff helps fold the boxes, grateful that at MOD, boxes are for pizzas, not people. And while the most challenging part of his morning is figuring out the bus schedule, he knows the route to all of our hearts, by heart.
Jada
Jada grew up on the South Side of Chicago, but if she could go anywhere she’d go to Japan, or to the ‘90s. Everyone in her MOD family agrees that the ‘90s was the best decade, because that’s the decade Jada was born. As a child, Jada dreamt of singing on the radio, of being a song no one could turn down. The high note of her day is waking up. Each morning she gives the sun a standing ovation––especially when it’s hidden by the clouds. Jada knows what it is to not be seen even when you’re right there. But at MOD she is a firework, a nebula, a lighthouse, surprising no one but herself when crowned Employee of the Year by Best Buddies.
Haley
Haley loves horses, the grace with which they run towards instead of away. How their hearts weigh ten whole pounds and their tenderness cannot be tamed. Horses have the biggest eyes of any land animal, can see 360 degrees in every direction. Haley cherishes being seen. When she nailed her routine at the Paralympics ice skating competition, the crowd got so fired up it’s a miracle the ice didn’t melt. But of every victory Haley has ever known, making a new friend takes home the gold. If a smile is the best topping you can put on someone’s face, then every day at MOD, Haley wins first place.
Tiffany
Tiffany is an artist. She draws the best out of people. Knows everyone is a work of art. Everything she does, she wants to do beautifully. Even carves the ski slopes like a sculptor. When she swims her body is like a bristle moving through blue paint. Her favorite stroke is the brushstroke. At MOD, she helps make a masterpiece of each pizza, the dough rolling out into a canvas. Her favorite kind of art is the kind you don’t have to make alone. When asked what her inspiration is, she says it’s her mother, who taught her there can never be too much compassion on your palette.
Evan
When Evan was a kid he wanted to be a professional wrestler, maybe because he knew how much he’d have to tackle. But ever since the day he got his driver’s license, nothing can pin him down. Someday, Evan wants to go to Vegas, a place where everyone knows how it feels to have the odds stacked against them and still be certain they can win. To work with Evan is to hit the jackpot. It is to know you have the best hand in the whole house. Right before MOD’s doors open and his shift begins––you should see Evan dance.
Anya
No matter how you slice it, Anya is a team-player, whether it’s making layups on the basketball court or pizzas at MOD. To be a champion, she knows, is to have a heart made of gold. She reminds us that what we build is important, but not nearly as important as building each other up. For Anya, judgment is never on the menu. Says her proudest moment is her high school diploma, friends cheering as graduation caps peppered the sky. Kindness is her favorite meal. Her favorite movies have fairytale endings, and time spent beside her turns happily ever after into something real.
Michael
Michael grew up dreaming of being a film director, wanting others to see how he sees the world––the lens widening to bring more people into view. In the reel of his mind, everyone is worthy of a spotlight, every role is a lead role. The MOD Squadders don’t need a telescope to see: Michael is a Star. He loves stand-up comedy. The best punchlines are the ones where nobody gets hurt. The secret to a good sauce: All Laughter, No Hecklers. Michael’s favorite part of his job is being needed, it fills him with satisfaction. The show could not go on without him. Lights! Camera! Action!
Eric
Eric believes there is always more than meets the eye. Sees how many people have been overlooked. Admires forensic scientists who seek to find what others have missed. Pays close attention to the fingerprints left when people touch our lives. It’s evidence that we need each other. We knead the dough and wonder, what if we looked at those around us through microscopes? If we could inspect their joys and challenges in detail, up close? Eric says everyday at MOD is a breaking discovery. Everywhere he looks he finds friendship’s DNA. The day he found proof that no one can be replaced, he felt like he solved the world’s biggest case.
Dimitri
Dimitri remembers his dreams. His first was to become an actor. Acting is the art of learning what it is to be inside another person’s life, to walk their path, to feel their strife. When acting, you become someone different to understand how we are all, also, alike. At MOD, where the walls fall while the dough rises, Dimitri gets to be himself––which is the role of a lifetime. His welcome is so warm some imagine it’s why the pizzas are hot. Dimitri serves up fun, inspiring others to bring more of who they are to the table. And it is never too much––everyone wants seconds.
Eden
Eden is like a camera. She hopes you look at her and smile. She likes pesto in her pizza, but if she were head chef––you can bet she’d put sugar in every recipe. Sweetness, the main ingredient to a good life. Eden says the best advice she ever got was, ‘If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.’ Eden talks all of the time. Says her favorite childhood memory was helping her brother organize his music collection. How many people do you know whose favorite memory is helping their brother? If Eden could plant a forest, it would all be family trees.
Make an Impact
Buy a No Name Cake
Support our efforts with the limited edition No Name Cake! Best Buddies receives a portion of the proceeds from every cake sold**. You’ll help continue to create more job opportunities for people with Down syndrome, autism and other intellectual disabilities.
Make an impact and try this delicious vanilla cake with a strawberry cream and sprinkles that’s available in-store only, while supplies last.
Find LocationAttend a Fundraiser
We’re holding fundraisers for Best Buddies at MOD locations across America on October 19th.
Learn MoreShare their stories
“All Pizzas Welcome” tells the unique stories of some of our MOD Buddies and the world they’re helping to create. Spread MODness by downloading and sharing this free e-book.
Download Now