Friends make life better — they help us laugh, feel safe, and know that we belong. Friendships are built by spending time together, sharing interests, and caring about each other.
Building friendships takes time. It happens by spending time together, sharing interests, caring about one another, and creating opportunities to connect. Whether someone wants to meet new people, strengthen current friendships, or talk with supporters about relationships, this toolkit can help guide conversations and planning.
This toolkit was developed in partnership with Values Into Action, whose expertise in supporting friendships and community inclusion helped shape these resources. The project was funded by the Pennsylvania Developmental Disabilities Council (PA DDC).
The Friendship Toolkit is a collection of resources that can help people:
Reflect on what makes a good friend, ways to connect with others, and how others can support those connections.
Create a vision for the friendships someone wants and identify what is helping or getting in the way.
Explore and discover different kinds of support and how they can work together to build meaningful friendships.
Friendship Portfolio
The Friendship Portfolio helps you think about what friendship means to you, explore the relationships in your life, and plan ways to build and maintain the connections you want. Use the Portfolio on your own or with someone you trust to think through things like staying connected with people you care about, strengthening existing relationships, or building new friendships. Designed as a tabloid-sized (11″ × 17″) booklet, the Friendship Portfolio includes: