Welcome Magdalena Grap and Michelle! The premise of the program is to provide a positive adult role model for "littles". Matching a "big" adult with a "little" child has a very positive impact on the Littles.
There are 200 littles on the waiting list for adult mentors.
Being a Big is not intended to be an all-encompassing, overwhelming commitment that takes up all of your free time. It IS a commitment, but one that can be incorporated into your lifestyle. A Big in their program is a partner, helping a child achieve success. They work as a team to make sure they are doing their best to have fun, provide life-changing experiences and connect children to the resources they need to achieve their potential.
The program offers support for their participants. This includes a coach to provide guidance, Bigs night outs that includes friends, co-workers, family, and spouses of the Big to learn about the program, Big recharge events to network with other Bigs to share experiences, great community partnerships that can help grow your match experience including free Y, Putnam, Figge and Botanical Center memberships for you and your little. They also have concert and sporting event tickets, summer camp scholarships, and HavLife grants that can give your little an opportunity to explore sports, art and/or music opportunities and interests. They have monthly events and experiences for matches to explore and experience the community together. Tailored to the age of the little, these opportunities are fun, engaging and memorable for both the big and little.
Some events you can participate in to support their programs beyond being a Big include the plant sale coming up, a golf outing, and rappelling - a very fun risk taking event.
