| Anthony Shriver | |
|---|---|
| Born | Anthony Kennedy Shriver July 20, 1965 Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
| Alma mater | Georgetown University |
| Occupation | Founder — Best Buddies International |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Spouse | Alina Shriver (née Mojica) |
| Children | Five children |
| Parents | Sargent Shriver and Eunice Kennedy Shriver (née Kennedy) |
| Relatives | Siblings: Maria Owings Shriver Mark Kennedy Shriver Timothy Perry Shriver Robert Sargent Shriver III Aunt: Jean Kennedy Smith Uncles: Edward M. Kennedy John F. Kennedy Robert F. Kennedy Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. see Kennedy family |
Anthony Paul Kennedy Shriver (born July 20, 1965, in Boston, Massachusetts) is an American activist for people with intellectual disabilities. In 1989, he founded Best Buddies International, an international organization that helps people with intellectual disabilities to find employment and social opportunities.[1]
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Shriver is the youngest of five children born to Eunice Kennedy Shriver (neé Kennedy), who founded the Special Olympics in 1968, and Sargent Shriver, a Democratic politician and activist.
He graduated from the Georgetown Preparatory School, North Bethesda, Maryland; he then attended Brown University before transferring to Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., from which he graduated in 1988 with a double major in theology and history.
Shriver is the Founder and Chairman of Best Buddies International a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization which he created in 1989 dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.[2] Recognizing the tremendous volunteer potential of university students, Anthony first inspired his college peers to personally collaborate in expanding the realm of opportunities that persons with intellectual disabilities should experience. He began his group at the Kennedy Institute in Washington, DC, a school for children with disabilities, founded by the Kennedy Family.
Today, through Anthony’s stewardship and entrepreneurial spirit, Best Buddies has grown into a leading nonprofit entity with increasing international reach across six continents; establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
In addition, Anthony and his brother Timothy Shriver (the Chairman and CEO of the Special Olympics) have recently joined forces and aligned Best Buddies and the Special Olympics, to create the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Challenge event, aimed to encourage greater acceptance and inclusion for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities.[3]
As a member of a prominent political family, Shriver is often mentioned as a potential candidate for elected office. In 2005, he considered running for Governor of Florida in the 2006 election.[4] He was said to have considered a run for Governor of Florida in the 2010 election.[5]
Shriver married Alina Shriver, née Mojica (born January 5, 1965, in Havana, Cuba)[6] on July 2, 1993, in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, and they have five children.[7] They currently reside in Florida.[8]