Barton and Pawnee County Big Brothers Big Sisters, (BBBS), has been creating magic in children’s lives since 2002, serving Barton and Pawnee counties. A strong mission guides our program: "Big Brothers Big Sisters helps boys and girls, most of whom are considered at-risk and live in single parent families, achieve their full potential through long-term personal relationships with carefully screened and caring volunteers".
How does it work? Big Brothers and Sisters are volunteers with a desire to spend time with a child who could really use a new friend. Volunteers ages range from 16 to 100 years old. Mentoring in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program is a fun volunteering opportunity for any age group. Many of our volunteers are: "Empty Nesters", High School students, College students, Retired Seniors, Young Couples, Families. There is a great amount of diversity in our program's volunteers, perhaps you too could see yourself spending time with a child in need of a friend in your community!
BBBS spends time getting to know the children and the volunteers in order to make sure matches are compatible.
Who are the Children in the Program? Children ages 5 to 16 may enroll. The majority of children enrolled in the program are referred to the agency by their parents. Some referrals also come from schools or other social services agencies. Our professional staff interviews each child and parent, visits the home and assesses individual needs to find out what sort of Big Brother, Big Sister, Big Couple or Big Family would best suit that child's individual needs. Currently there are around 50 children on the waiting list for a Big Brother, Big Sister, Big Couple or Big Family in the Barton / Pawnee Co area. Maybe one of them is waiting for you!
Does The Program Work? Program evaluations indicated that providing youth with a positive role model results in an increased ability to avoid substance abuse and delinquency, significant improvements in confidence, classroom behaviour, attitude toward school and early parenting. Researchers found that, compared with the control group, mentored youth were:
46 percent less likely than controls to initiate drug use
27 percent less likely to initiate alcohol use
Almost one third less likely to hit someone
Skipped half as many school days
Felt more competent at schoolwork and showed gains in grade point average
Displayed better relationships with their parents and peers
Impact on Volunteers: Mentors consistently report that their match is extremely fulfilling to them, expanding our program's positive impact even further . Scientific studies indicate that people who volunteer in mentoring programs have a 44% lower death rate than those who don't do any charitable work, making mentoring as beneficial as exercising 4 times a week. (Buck Institute for Age Research in Navajo, CA)
Powerful Local Impact: Our program is proud that our volunteers are making a significant impact on the children they are mentoring. The Program Evaluation results from 2008 indicated that matched children experienced the following improvements locally in Barton and Pawnee Counties are as follows:
85.7% improved ability to avoid delinquency
81.5% improved self-confidence
57.9% improved school performance
56.5% have an improved sense of the future
Positive Affect For a Lifetime! Long term studies have been made that find the positive benefits of our mentoring program last long into adulthood! Long term studies have found that children who were matched in a BBBS program enjoyed the following benefits as adults:
*75% more likely to have received a four-year college degree
*39% more likely to have current household incomes of $75,000 or higher
*62% perceive themselves to have achieved a higher level of success than their peers who were not involved in BBBS
*52% more likely to be engaged in their community, particularly when it comes to volunteering