History

In June 2002, Pat Leseman and Rosemary Fagrelius, sat at the Leseman's kitchen table, pondering a long summer of unstructured, empty hours ahead for their teenage sons, Michael and John. The young men had been best friends since they first met in a preschool program for children with disabilities. Frustrated at the lack of age-appropriate, interesting and accessible social opportunities for teens and young adults with disabilities, Pat and Rosemary decided it was up to them to create fun, interesting opportunities for their sons and their friends.

Armed with creativity, a knowledge of their community, a blank calendar and a list of their sons' friends and classmates, the two mothers began filling the calendar with interesting, age-appropriate activities and events like adaptive recreation teams, trips to the zoo, movie nights, ball games and service projects. Assuming that other parents were equally frustrated, the two began calling other parents of adolescents with disabilities to see if they were interested in being part of the effort. The calls brought an enthusiastic response from eight families. The Highland Friendship Club was born.

Since that first summer, the Highland Friendship Club has expanded to include:

• More than eighty members from around the Twin Cities.
• A year-round schedule of activities and regular Friday night meetings and events.
• Opportunities for members and their families alike to learn about the special challenges experienced by teens and young adults with disabilities.
• Hundreds of social, educational and spiritual activities, events, and service projects.
• A unique, thriving partnership with Cretin-Derham Hall High School.
• Four part-time staff members and a part-time executive director.

In 2004, the Highland Friendship Club formalized its status as a 501c3 non-profit organization, formed its first board of directors and began conducting fundraising activities to sustain its mission.