PHILADELPHIA, PA (June 4, 2012) — Mary Flores joins Philadelphia-based Big Brothers Big Sisters of America as Vice President of Human Resources. The nation’s largest non-profit network of mentoring agencies, Big Brothers Big Sisters carefully pairs children with adult volunteers in safe, long-term one-to-one mentoring matches and provides ongoing support to mentors, mentees and families to achieve measurable outcomes.
A “Big Sister” to four mentees over the years, Flores is the organization’s first executive hire since the announcement of Charles Pierson as Big Brothers Big Sisters of America’s President and Chief Executive Officer. Like Pierson, Flores comes to the national Home office from Big Brothers Big Sisters Lone Star (North Texas), the largest of the mentoring network’s 350 affiliates, where she served as Vice President of Human Resources for seven years.
“The Home office, as was the case with the Lone Star agency, will benefit greatly from Mary’s rich experience in human resources and her passion for our cause,” Pierson said. “Lone Star was able to grow and thrive because of our team. Mary’s human resources leadership, knowledge and experience were evident in the staff’s strength, dedication and commitment to work through obstacles to best serve our families, volunteers, donors and community partners.”
Prior to her Big Brothers Big Sisters career, Flores, a certified Senior Professional Human Resources (SPHR) professional, served in a number of human resources capacities, refining her skills in benefits, compensation, employee relations, staffing, legal compliance, training, organizational development and strategic planning.
“I care deeply about our work and know personally the importance of Big Brothers Big Sisters’ success in assisting single mothers, incarcerated parents, those who serve in the military, and others who seek our support to help their children improve in school, make positive choices and achieve higher aspirations,” Flores said. “I am honored and excited to be able to provide human resources leadership and support as we strengthen our collective people skills and our capacity to help our agencies serve more children across the nation.”
Flores became interested in human resources shortly after she earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh and headed south for warmer temperatures in Texas. She landed a job in human resources at The Nasher Company, a Dallas real estate development and property management firm (developed NorthPark Center in Dallas). Nasher is more commonly associated internationally with the Nasher Sculpture Center, the result of a donation from Ray and Patsy Nasher of one of the most significant modern and contemporary art collections. The position provided her opportunities to meet wealthy and influential arts patrons, including retailer Stanley Marcus (Neiman Marcus), allowing her to gain an appreciation for the importance of relationship building for non-profit professionals. She continued to refine her skills, growing in her career as a human resources generalist in a number of industries, ranging from telecommunications to banking.
Flores believes in redefining boundaries, identifying untapped resources and talent, and motivating people to work together to support strategic objectives. She has a high regard for the splendor of productive organizational structures, particularly those that facilitate and comprise diversity. In many ways, Flores’ professional and personal pursuits parallel.
“In life, I’m always gazing upward. In Dallas and here in Philadelphia, I find myself walking around and looking to the top of buildings where you see the most amazing architectural details,” Flores said. “I kind of feel like Marlo Thomas in the ‘60s sitcom, That Girl, optimistic and excited about the future. I’m going to enjoy Philadelphia and am fortunate to have the opportunity to grow with Big Brothers Big Sisters nationally,” she said.
Flores is married (she met her husband, Richard, at The Nasher Company) and has two young adult sons. She feels a career change as significant as her move to Big Brothers Big Sisters of America would not be possible without the support of her family. She will continue to serve as a mentor to her “Little Sister,” 8-year-old Michelle, during her visits back to Dallas on weekends and holidays.
About Big Brothers Big Sisters
Big Brothers Big Sisters, the nation’s largest donor and volunteer supported mentoring network, holds itself accountable for children in its program to achieve measurable outcomes, such as educational success; avoidance of risky behaviors; and higher aspirations, greater confidence and better relationships. Partnering with parents/guardians, schools, corporations and others in the community, Big Brothers Big Sisters carefully pairs children (“Littles”) with screened volunteer mentors (“Bigs”) and monitors and supports these one-to-one mentoring matches throughout their course. The first-ever Big Brothers Big Sisters Youth Outcomes Summary, released in 2012, substantiates that its mentoring programs have proven, positive academic, socio-emotional and behavioral outcomes for youth, areas linked to high school graduation, avoidance of juvenile delinquency and college or job readiness.
Big Brothers Big Sisters provides children facing adversity, often those of single or low-income households or families where a parent is incarcerated or serving in the military, with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one mentoring relationships that change their lives for the better, forever. This mission has been the cornerstone of the organization’s 100-year history. With about 350 agencies across the country, Big Brothers Big Sisters serves nearly 630,000 children, volunteers and families. Learn how you can positively impact a child’s life, donate or volunteer at BigBrothersBigSisters.org.
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