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A concert can be a unique experience for matches. Big Sister Sharon, who volunteers with BBBS of Monmouth & Middlesex Counties, and Little Sister Melissa attended a concert together in February and had an unforgettable time. The two saw indie pop band Astro Lasso along with We The Kings, Cute Is What We Aim For, and Plaid Brixx.

“We were so close to the stage too – we were able to cheer and reach hands with all the bands,” Big Sister Sharon said. “Melissa and I had so fun dancing, screaming and letting loose.”

At one point, members of Plaid Brixx gifted roses to several fans, and Sharon and Melissa brought a lot of energy, hoping to be noticed. The band must have had a good eye.

“I kid you not, Melissa got one,” Sharon said. “It might have also helped I was next to her flailing my arms pointing to her to draw attention in our direction.”

The magical night started before the concert, when the two got to meet Astro Lasso and their manager Frankie Muniz (the actor who played Malcolm in Malcolm in the Middle).

The band and manager have partnered with Big Brothers Big Sisters to offer Mentoring through Music Experiences for Bigs and Littles. Since mid-February, they have been touring the U.S. and inviting matches to enjoy their shows and a pre-show meet-and-greet.

“The band and Frankie were so friendly and attentive to us,” Sharon said. “Melissa was so confident and immediately started talking to Frankie all about Malcolm in the Middle and how she’s the middle kid too.”

Sharon said she enjoyed seeing her Little’s self-assurance and watching her just being herself.

Astro Lasso’s tour ended on March 27, but the band and Muniz are committed to finding more ways to work with Big Brothers Big Sisters. If you aren’t able to catch an Astro Lasso show, maybe look for tickets to see another band that you both enjoy.

Based off Big Sister Sharon’s experience, she would highly recommend it.

“It’s moments like this, when you can be a part of making someone so happy and creating one-of-a-kind memories, that remind me how rewarding and fun being a Big Sister truly is.”

More than 400 volunteers will flood the grounds of Sto-Rox High School near Pittsburgh in April to clean windows, mulch new flower beds, and plant trees. Part of Comcast Cares Day, Comcast NBCUniversal’s annual celebration of their company’s year-round commitment to service, the project will be a much-needed makeover for the school. “The high school is like a blank canvas,” says Big Brother Cory, who is leading this year’s Cares Day project.

Cory, an accounting and finance supervisor with Comcast in Pittsburgh, is a Big through Beyond School Walls, a program that matches youth with Comcast NBCUniversal employees who mentor them a couple of times a month at their workplace. He has been a Big for seven years, since the program started in his office.

His current Little Brother, Camren, is 14. They do one-on-one and group activities led by their Big Brothers Big Sisters match support specialist each week. BBBS and Comcast have brought in speakers to demonstrate new technology, like 3D printers and dimensional software, in addition to organizing games and challenges for the matches.

Every April, Comcast employees nationwide organize and participate in volunteer projects like the Sto-Rox High School project, and the Beyond School Walls Bigs and Littles are often at the center of it all. Big Brother Cory will ride around in his pickup truck, making sure the donated and discounted trees and flowers make it to the school from the landscaping companies that support Comcast Cares Day. Little Brother Camren will be his right-hand man. Cory says making their school look better is good for everyone involved, but especially kids and school staff.

“With the students and teachers, they have the same interactions just about everyday, but on this one day, they work together on something productive for the school. It gives them a break from the usual day to day,” Cory says.

This is Cory’s third year leading a project at a Comcast’s Beyond School Walls partner school to help Littles and their classmates have an improved educational environment. Comcast says that since 2001, more than 800,000 Comcast NBCUniversal employees, their friends, family members, and Comcast’s community partners have worked on more than 7,700 projects and volunteered millions of service hours. And to match the efforts of these volunteers, the Comcast Foundation has provided more than $20 million in grants to Comcast Cares Day partner organizations to have a greater impact.

Big Brother Cory says he knows every hour his team spends at Sto-Rox High School will make a big difference. “Simple things like cleaning the windows, that’s not something that happens every week or every month,” he says. “Maybe the kids don’t notice the big improvements, but it’s nice to look through a clean window.”

Cory also knows that mentoring a student like Camren will make an important impact on his success, having grown up in the same city and benefiting from mentors as he transitioned into high school.  

2017’s Comcast Cares Day is April 22. To learn more about Comcast Cares Day and Comcast NBCUniversal’s commitment to volunteerism, click here.

Leaving behind their homes, their jobs, and their support systems, many Chaldean families leave Iraq to build new lives in the United States.

Chaldeans are Christians who often experience intense persecution in Iraq. Many families settle in Michigan or San Diego, where there are large Chaldean communities. Big Brother Jason’s parents immigrated to the U.S. in the 1980s, and he grew up in a Chaldean community in San Diego.

He says that even though he was born in the United States, adapting to American culture is an everyday battle. “We’re an Eastern culture going into a Western culture, and while we do take on some Western things, there are some Eastern things we don’t let go of, and that can be hard,” he says.

A new program through Big Brothers Big Sisters of San Diego County is focused on making that transition easier for Chaldean youth.

Almost three years ago, Bryan Bazzi, a tenant representative for the commercial real estate company CBRE, saw that youth in his community weren’t always using the resources available to them. “I spoke to friends and learned that they credit their success to positive role models,” he says. He decided to start a mentoring program for Chaldean refugee youth. He partnered with Big Brothers Big Sisters and started planning.

First, Bryan had to make sure this program would work for Chaldean refugees in San Diego. He assembled an affinity group to work on raising funds and recruiting Bigs and Littles. He strategically chose the members of the affinity group to be representative of the Chaldean community and worked with political figures and religious leaders in the community to garner support.

“They understood it, they accepted it, and they said they would back it up,” Bryan says. “Once you have that kind of support, people want to know more and they want to be involved.”

Second, Bryan had to make sure parents would see the value in the program and sign their children up to be Littles. Building trust was essential, so Bryan worked with social workers who help refugee families transition to life in the U.S. These social workers connect refugee families with housing, jobs, and community services, and now that the BBBS program has started making matches, the social workers will be able to refer youth to BBBS as another community service.

The program, called “Ayana,” which means “help” in Arabic, launched in January. Jason is the Ayana program’s first Big Brother.

Jason says he feels a responsibility to help kids in his community, and to help his 15-year-old Little Brother, Yousif, see that he can succeed in America. Jason’s dad modeled hard work for Jason when he was growing up. “He had a degree where he was from, but he worked long, long hours in Detroit, picking up glass bottles outside of the liquor store and recycling them for the owner,” Jason says. Eventually, he became a salesman, and then a manager. Now, he is the general manager of a wine store.

A structural engineer in San Diego, Jason says it was the guidance of a friend who recognized his math ability and guided him into engineering. “My dad worked a lot, and he didn’t understand how it worked here, how AP classes worked, how to apply for college, how to get scholarships,” Jason says. “My friend made me aware of what’s around me and what life has to offer me.”

Now, Jason will help Little Brother Yousif with those tasks. “I feel like these kids can accomplish so much, if they have confidence in themselves, if people give them confidence.”

To kick off Bigs in Blue as a national Big Brothers Big Sisters initiative, BBBSA and BBBS Lone Star hosted a press conference in Dallas in March. Assistant Police Chief Paul Stokes, BBBS Lone Star CEO Pierce Bush, and BBBSA CEO Pam Iorio spoke about the need for Bigs in Blue in Dallas as well as the incredible response the program has already received.

BBBSA has been encouraging its affiliates to seek matching funds for grants, and the Dallas community has stepped up to do much more than match the grant awarded to Lone Star for Dallas’s Bigs in Blue program. The Crystal Charity Ball, a Dallas-based charity that supports several causes each year, raised $500,000 to bring Bigs in Blue to Dallas.

As a result of the phenomenal support from the Dallas community, BBBS of Lone Star has set a goal of making 300 Bigs in Blue matches in Dallas. Assistant Chief Stokes said he would like to be the first Big Brother in the program.

When a police officer is matched with a child in a one-to-one mentoring relationship, there is a potential for positive outcomes for not only the Little and Big but also the whole community. Bigs in Blue is a Big Brothers Big Sisters program with a goal of building bridges between youth and police.

At a press conference in Dallas in March, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America announced that 13 cities have been awarded grants to start or expand Bigs in Blue programs. BBBSA awarded $560,000 in grant funding, with seven cities receiving funds from WellCare, the first corporate partner to support Bigs in Blue. WellCare is contributing $250,000 per year for three years and encouraging its own employees to volunteer as Bigs.

The cities awarded grants in the first round are listed with the funder of their grant noted in parentheses:

Austin, Texas (BBBSA)
Chicago, Illinois (WellCare)
Columbia, South Carolina  (WellCare)
Dallas, Texas (BBBSA)
Houston, Texas (BBBSA)
Los Angeles, California (BBBSA)
Louisville, Kentucky  (WellCare)
New York, New York  (WellCare and BBBSA)
Omaha, Nebraska  (WellCare)
Orlando, Florida  (WellCare)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (BBBSA)
Roanoke, Virginia (BBBSA)
Tampa, Florida (WellCare and BBBSA)

Big Brothers Big Sisters of America is actively raising funds to provide grants to all 110 agencies that requested funding to start or expand Bigs in Blue in their communities.

Chuck E. Cheese’s might have to change their slogan from “The Place Where a Kid Can be a Kid” to “The Place Where a Little Can be a Little.” As the National Preferred Destination of Big Brothers Big Sisters, Chuck E. Cheese’s continues to be go-to spot for Bigs to take their Littles.

This May, Chuck E. Cheese is calling all Bigs and Littles to help them celebrate their 40th Birthday. Chuck E. Cheese’s is offering every kid who visits Chuck E. Cheese’s between April 10 and May 19 40 free tickets. May 19 is their official birthday, and on that day, Bigs and Littles have a chance to break a world record for the most people blowing party blowers at the same time for 10 seconds. The goal is for at least 7,000 people to participate to break the record.

World Record Attempt
Friday, May 19
East Coast: 8:40 p.m.
Central: 7:40 p.m.
Mountain: 6:40 p.m.
West Coast: 5:40 p.m.

Be sure to arrive early for a free piece of birthday cake.

This March, Chuck E. Cheese’s held their fourth Pin-Up campaign to raise money for Big Brothers Big Sisters. Customers were encouraged to purchase a Pin-Up in support of BBBS while having a fun day at Chuck E. Cheese’s.

To make the trip even more enticing, BBBS has been offering downloadable certificates and coupons for discounts on food, drinks, and tokens.

The campaign has been a resounding success over the past two years, with Chuck E. Cheese’s having donated more than $300,000 to BBBS. 

In September, Chuck E. Cheese’s will hold another Pin-Up Campaign. If you were unlucky enough to miss out on participating in March, mark your calendar for Labor Day.

Three school resource officers, a detective, and a warrants officer teamed up to raise money for Kansas Big Brothers Big Sisters through Bowl for Kids’ Sake in March. Together, they raised nearly $4,200. Big Brother Jon, a school resource officer, raised $2,600 himself.

“My experience is that, as a grown-up, the hardest part is asking other grown-ups for money. It’s a little bit awkward,” Jon says. “But once you get over that and realize that people are good and want to give to good causes, and if you can get past asking, you find out that people are more than willing to help.”

Being in schools every day, it was natural for Jon to volunteer with Kansas Big Brothers Big Sisters’ School-Based Mentoring Program. He became a Big Brother to Little Brother Cuba three years ago.

When he’s working outside the school, he’s known as “Officer Adkins.” In the six elementary schools he covers, he’s “Officer Jon.” To his Little Brother, Cuba, he’s “Big Brother Jon.” Kids often run up to Officer Jon. “Are you really Cuba’s brother?” they ask. Big Brother Jon says he’s proud to say yes, and that Cuba likes that kids know his Big Brother.

“I think if I was somebody who didn’t have this profession, I don’t know that he would be as proud of it,” Jon says. “It feels good – here’s this kid who gets this huge self-esteem boost, who is so proud because of badge and the uniform, and me.”

Being involved with elementary kids is important to Jon as a police officer. Generally, he says, officers are reactive to crime. People call when something bad happens. Officers react. But being involved with young kids allows him to be proactive.

“If I can make sure a child has a positive experience now, hopefully by the time they go to high school, I’ve been able to mold their perception of law enforcement, their understanding of good and bad,” he says.

As a Big Brother to 8-year-old Cuba, Jon spends an hour each week shooting hoops, figuring out problems on a math worksheet, or toppling wooden Jenga towers. Recently, Jon brought Cuba a special pepperoni pizza for the two of them to share during their lunch.

To help make sure more kids have the chance to be matched with Bigs, Jon volunteered for the local advisory board and the BFKS committee. He attributes his fundraising success to the good-natured competition among the other dedicated volunteers and his BFKS teammates. “You don’t have to have a giant population to make a difference,” he says. “You just need the motivation.”

Little Brother Kaleb grew up angry and upset that his father wasn’t involved in his life. He would call and sometimes his father wouldn’t answer. His father would make plans and promises but then wouldn’t show up. “Sometimes I don’t understand why my father doesn’t want to talk to me, and I don’t know what I have done,” Kaleb says.

Kaleb wanted a male figure in his life and he says his attitude in school was a product of not having one. He was constantly getting in trouble, and his teacher resorted to sending him out of the classroom when he was disruptive.

Kaleb’s mom was at a loss when it came to her son’s behavior. “Kaleb was suspended so many times and his behavioral challenges were so overwhelming that I wanted to give up,” she says.

“It is so nice when I come home after school, and I have someone to talk to when I am feeling down.”

– Little Brother Kaleb

His teacher asked her colleague, Mr. James, to work through these challenges with Kaleb, and he was up for it.

“I ended up having to see Kaleb just about every day for poor behavior,” Mr. James says.

For months, he spent time with Kaleb when he needed discipline and guidance. Kaleb’s teacher asked Mr. James to sit in on a parent-teacher conference with Kaleb’s family. At that meeting, Kaleb’s mom mentioned that she thought Kaleb could use a Big Brother.

“As she said this, I immediately interjected and told them that I would love to be Kaleb’s Big Brother,” Mr. James said. “I also told them how great my Big Brother was and how influential he is in my life.”

When Mr. James was a Little Brother, he dealt with issues similar to what Kaleb was dealing with. His father was absent, and he was being raised in a house full of women. He needed a male role model, so his mother enrolled him as a Little Brother. “We still communicate to this day, but the highlight of our relationship was the day that he got the opportunity to meet my Little Brother, Kaleb,” Mr. James said.

Now, Kaleb is doing well in school and has been involved with the student council. He will complete his freshman year in high school this spring. “Kaleb has a 3.0 GPA now, and he can still be a class clown, but he knows how to get himself back on track.”

Kaleb and Mr. James have played laser tag and paintball together. They even have a secret handshake.

When the two make plans and promises, Mr. James shows up and keeps them, and when Kaleb calls, Mr. James always answers the phone.

When Little Sister Samantha beamed confidently from the stage while competing in the “Miss Kearns” pageant, her Big Sister thought about the shy little girl she used to be. On stage, Samantha was almost a different person. “She exuded a confidence that I would have never known existed when I first met her,” Megan says.

Big Sister Megan and Little Sister Samantha were matched when Samantha was 10. Back then, Big Sister Megan had to work hard to get her to say anything. “Getting to know Sammy in the beginning was a slow process,” Megan says. “She didn’t say much unless I asked her questions, and even when I asked her questions, sometimes I only got short answers.”

“She is always there for me when I’m in need of guidance, when I need advice, for anything.”

– Little Sister Samantha

Over time, the match built trust and Samantha began to come out of her shell. “Conversations are no longer a struggle with her,” Megan says.  Samantha eventually began to talk about her friends and her family with Megan, and Megan stayed consistently involved in Samantha’s life, even when things got hard. Samantha’s home life was unstable, and periodically, it became difficult to contact her because her family’s phone was turned off.

Megan found ways to see Samantha even when it was a challenge, and she was there for Samantha in high school when she was planning for her future. In high school, Samantha was an honors student with a 4.0 GPA. Knowing she would be the first person in her family to attend a university, Samantha needed the guidance of someone who had been there. “She is most definitely a role model in my life,” Samantha says. “Megan has helped me and has invested so much of her own time to help me apply for college and help me look for scholarships.”

Now, Samantha is working full time. She has been accepted to college and dreams of becoming a dermatologist. Even though she has graduated high school, she still keeps in touch with Big Sister Megan, who says she’s considering becoming a Big again now that Samantha has graduated.

“When I decided I wanted to become a Big, it never occurred to me what I would learn in the process,” Megan says. “Sammy has taught me patience, the importance of communication, the beauty of self-confidence, and the joy and pride that can be felt watching someone else succeed.”

At age 10, Little Brother Nick was already skipping school, smoking, and drinking.  He was constantly bullying other kids. “My grades were all right, but I had a bad attitude about school,” he says. “I fought a lot and got into lots of trouble.”

Coping with abuse and loss in his childhood, Nick acted out in school and at home. His mom decided to enroll him as a Little Brother to give him a role model who might help him deal with hard, emotional things in a more positive way. She wanted someone to be there for her son in a way his father wasn’t, and when Nick was in fourth grade, he was matched with his Big Brother, Ryan.

“I know that if Nick is having trouble in school or something else, I can tell Ryan and he will do whatever he can to help Nick out.”

– Little Brother Nick’s mom

Ryan volunteered to be a Big because he wanted to give back to a boy who didn’t have a positive role model in his life. When Ryan was 13, he lost his father, but he had his own brothers to look up to. He understood how loss could affect a child and how important it is to feel supported during a time of grief.

Together, Big Brother Ryan and Little Brother Nick drive go-karts, root for their favorite college football team, and talk about whatever comes up.

Nick’s mom says Big Brother Ryan’s influence has completely changed Nick’s attitude. “I think being matched with Ryan has made Nick more mature. He is a lot more grown up than the other kids in his class,” she says.

Since being matched with Ryan, Nick has stopped using alcohol, smoking, skipping school, and bullying other kids. “I’ve changed a lot because I have a Big Brother. Ryan is like a real big brother to me,” Nick says. “He keeps me out of trouble and talks to me about safety stuff to keep me safe.”

Nick’s changes in behavior and outlook on life is important for his future. He dreams of going to college and then on to law school at University of Oklahoma, his Big Brother’s alma mater.