German Car Scene

Audi and Best Buddies Announce International Partnership

Posted 23rd May, 2007 in Audi | Leave a comment

Audi has announced that it will be the exclusive automotive sponsor of Best Buddies within the Americas and support numerous projects and fundraising events in Europe and Overseas. Press release below.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – German luxury car manufacturer Audi and Best Buddies International, a nonprofit organization that provides opportunities for one-to-one friendship and integrated employment to people with intellectual disabilities, proudly announce their new partnership. For the next five years, Audi will be the exclusive automotive sponsor of Best Buddies within the Americas and support numerous projects and fundraising events in Europe and Overseas.

The Audi/Best Buddies partnership kicks off with the introduction of the Audi RS 4 Friendship Car designed by world-renowned, neo-pop artist Romero Britto. Tom Brady, Best Buddies supporter and star quarterback for the New England Patriots, is the first to receive the Audi RS 4 Friendship Car on May 21, 2007 at an exclusive cocktail event held at Louis Boston’s “Restaurant L” on Newberry Street. The car, which was unveiled in April at Art Chicago, will embark on a tour of some of the world’s most captivating cities between New York and Mexico D. F. culminating in Miami, where it will be the centerpiece of a live auction benefiting Best Buddies.

“What strikes me most about Best Buddies is the simplicity – and magnitude – of the mission,” says Brady. “Friendship is a simple idea. Connecting people who may not normally be friends and changing the way people think about people with intellectual disabilities – that’s huge. I commend supporters like Audi, who make the growth of this incredible organization possible through initiatives like the Audi RS 4 Friendship Car.”

The Audi RS 4 Friendship Car is the ultimate in high-performance in luxury, taking performance and design to the next level with its compelling and distinctive presence, 420-hp V8 engine and quattro® all-wheel drive. Designed with Britto’s colorful and dynamic images featuring a woman’s portrait, the car is also a work of art.

In addition to the Audi RS 4 Friendship car project, Audi and Best Buddies plan to celebrate their new friendship with a launch event at the Audi Forum in New York in August prior to the U.S. Open, as well as with the first annual Audi Best Buddies Challenge: Hearst Castle, a 100-mile cycling fundraiser chaired by First Lady of California Maria Shriver in September, and several other events and initiatives throughout the year.

“I created Best Buddies to be an organization unlike any other, one that leads the movement to improve social inclusion for people with intellectual disabilities and permanently changes the way society approaches issues related to people with intellectual disabilities,” says Anthony K. Shriver, Founder and Chairman of Best Buddies International.

“Best Buddies strives to unite people of difference through the universal bond of friendship, which is an incredibly powerful force in all of our lives, regardless of our strengths, weakness, gifts or disabilities,” Shriver says. “In the work that we do at Best Buddies, we see every day how friendship unites people who may outwardly appear to be different, just as, from a distance, a nonprofit organization like Best Buddies and a major corporation like Audi appear to be different. In truth, we are built on many of the same values. Audi truly embraces our forward-thinking philosophy, and I am confident that through our partnership, Audi will be instrumental in helping Best Buddies expand its mission of friendship and inclusion around the globe. We look forward to a long, fruitful relationship.”

Johan de Nysschen, Executive Vice President in charge of Audi of America says, “Social responsibility has long been a core component of Audi’s corporate culture in different countries and causes - like our support of the Sir Elton John Aids foundation in the US and the UK or of the Ayrton Senna Institute which improves the living conditions of street children in Brazil. With our commitment to Best Buddies International we intend not only to be involved in fundraising events, but to activate our international network and presence to help Best Buddies expand its mission of friendship around the globe. August Horch, the founder of Audi, once said: ‘A dream worth having is a dream worth pursuing’. Exploring and believing in new ideas and make visions come true - this spirit is reflected in both our organizations. With Best Buddies and its concept of one-to-one friendships, Anthony K. Shriver has created an organization unlike any other. And Audi - with more than 100 years of history - has always been a pioneer in automotive engineering and design. The Audi RS4 Friendship car is not only the symbol of our partnership, but also of those shared values.”

The new Audi / Best Buddies partnership begins as Best Buddies expands its program in Germany and its neighboring countries. Inaugurated in 2005, Best Buddies Germany is a vibrant program addition to Best Buddies International’s growing overseas presence. With its headquarters office in Berlin, Best Buddies Germany is expanding its friendship programs to Hamburg, Munich and Nuremberg and soon will be the first European nation to launch the innovative e-Buddies® online friendship service. This summer, chapters in Austria and Switzerland will follow with a joint fundraising event in Kitzbühel. In the U.S., the newly-launched programs will be celebrated at The Nineteenth Annual Best Buddies Ball: A Celebration of New Friendships in the Alps: Austria, Germany & Switzerland. Held at the home of Sargent and Eunice Kennedy Shriver in Potomac, Maryland, the Ball is widely regarded as a highlight of the Washington, D.C. social calendar.