COMMUNITY-BASED PROGRAMVolunteer mentors (Bigs) are matched one-on-one with local youth (Littles ages 7+). Bigs & Littles (Matches) spend a minimum of 4 hours a month focusing on low to no-cost activities and have outings that take place in the community ( going to libraries, sporting or cultural events, the mall, the park, etc.).
In a Community Based program, the child’s parent(s)/guardian(s) joins the match relationship—participating in the enrollment interview and monthly match support contacts. Bigs, Littles, & parents/guardians communicate on scheduling outings that work with everyone's availability. Some matches meet on the weekends, others get together in the evenings after school/work. Each match is unique and develops a reliable schedule that works for them. Most volunteers serve as a Community Based Big individually. However, our “Big Couple”, “Big Family”, or "Big Duo" expand the experience by involving the volunteer’s spouse/partner and/or own children as active participants in the match. Big Couples and Big Families typically are matched with Little Brothers. Professional staff help develop and support each match. During their outings, Bigs help cultivate relationships that provide their Little with the skills to manage every day challenges. Through simple friendships, Bigs experience the joy of helping their Little discover a world of possibilities and opportunities. Benefits for Bigs
Benefits for LittlesBig Brothers Big Sisters one-to-one mentoring makes a huge difference for the youth it serves. Research consistently shows that Big Brothers Big Sisters mentoring helps youth overcome the many challenges they face. Statistics have proven that youth in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program showed improvement in the following areas:
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SCHOOL/SITE-BASED FACILITATED PROGRAMIn the Site/School-Based Facilitated Program, matches meet at a designated location - like a school, workplace, community center, or other site - and a BBBS staff member is present at all meetings and observing match interactions. This program consists of High School and College Student Bigs being matched one-on-one with an elementary or middle school Little. BBBS staff plan the activities matches do together each week. Bigs often eat lunch with their Little, or the match will hang out in the school's library, gym, computer lab, or other designated space. These programs typically take place weekly for about one hour, occurring on the same day each week (For example, every Tuesday from 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm). This schedule follows the academic school calendar.
During these sessions, a professional staff member will guide the match through activities designed to strengthen the match relationship and help youth build important character strengths such as motivation, resilience, self-esteem, and social skills to help them succeed in life. 2024-2025 Locations
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