! E T A D P U BIG
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er big brothers big sist
community • mentoring • family • youth development
Read Jeremiah’s story on pg.5 TAX CREDIT on pg. 7
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Paul’s Car Wash
About us Mission: Our mission is to provide children facing adversity with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one relationships that change their lives for the better. Vision: Our vision is that all children achieve success in life. By partnering with parents/guardians, volunteers and others in the community we are Accountable for each child in our program achieving: • Higher aspirations, greater confidence, and better relationships • Avoidance of risky behaviors • Educational success
Welcoming New Board Members BBBSAZ’S newest member to the Board of Directors is Fry’s Food Stores Pam Giannonatti. Pam has been an associate at Fry’s Food Stores for more than 30 years. She currently holds the title of Community Relations/Consumer Services Manager for Fry’s and works hand-in-hand with Fry’s customers and the community. BBBSAZ is proud to have her. BBBSAZ has recently been accepted into the Fry’s Community Rewards Program. You can support Big Brothers Big Sisters by shopping at Fry’s. To do so, create a Fry’s account, link it with your Fry’s card number, and choose Big Brothers Big Sisters as your Community Rewards beneficiary. Use the following organization number - 19849. Click to set up your card today!
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In The Community Paul’s Car Wash is just around the corner! Come out and join Paul Horton, BBBSAZ Board Member and Morning Host of KPHO CBS 5’s Morning News for the fundraising event of the year! Paul will live in an RV in the Desert Ridge Marketplace parking lot from Monday, October 20th to Friday, October 24th. Each day, beginning at 4:30 AM, Paul will broadcast live while washing hundreds of cars with help from surrounding businesses and agency volunteers. Each and every car wash patron will donate what they can to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arizona. In addition, many of our corporate partners will provide generous sponsorships throughout the week. For example, our friends at Wells Fargo have created a dollar-for-dollar challenge, they will match up to $20,000!! And that’s not all....the entertainment is AMAZING!! Some of the talent lined up for 2014 includes Grumpy Cat, the Arizona Cardinals Cheerleaders, the Suns Gorilla, Fire Dancers, Miss Arizona and so much more!! You have got to come out to get your car washed and be a part of this one-of-a-kind MASSIVE fundraising event! If you are interested in providing a sponsorship for this event in exchange for LIVE TV coverage, please contact Jessica Whitney, Director of Development at jwhitney@bbbsaz.org. If you would like to join Paul to wash cars as a volunteer, please contact Carolyn King, Volunteer Coordinator at cking@bbbsaz.org.
Little eating at Raising Cane’s before going to the Diamondbacks game.
Child Safety Training and Child Safety Specialist, Terri Waibel, LMSW Meet Terri Waibel, Training and Child Safety Specialist for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arizona. Terri has worked with BBBSAZ for eight years in increasingly responsible service capacities and currently offers ongoing “best practices” training opportunities for staff and volunteers. Terri offers trainings that are responsive and timely to what is needed/requested by both volunteers and staff. A few of the most helpful volunteer classes include: Mentoring Children of Prisoners, Adverse Childhood Experience Study, Mentor Meet Up, and Academics and Your Little. BBBSAZ staff also benefits from Terri’s expertise in areas of: administering surveys, discussing sensitive issues, behavioral health diagnoses, mentoring children of prisoners, adverse childhood experience study, mandatory reporting, and many others. In addition to trainings, Terri also supervises and mentors foundation level graduate students of Social Work through Arizona State University. BBBSAZ is fortunate to have a Training and Child Safety Specialist and thanks Terri for being incredibly dedicated to our children and staff.
Here are a few fun facts about Terri: What you have liked about working for BBBSAZ: My team of colleagues. They are deeply supportive and believe in the efficacy of the mission. Who has been your role model/mentor in life and why: I have learned from several mentors in life and they have evolved over time, but the first role model I revered was my dad. He taught me the true meaning of selfless love toward others, suspending judgment and working hard. What is a career experience that you’re proud of: Both finishing graduate school and passing examination for my LMSW are accomplishments that I am honored to reflect on.
What is a favorite weekend hobby/activity: Yoga, meditation and reading. What makes you laugh: Inside jokes. My family. My friends. And, Parks and Recreation. There is one episode that I could watch everyday and still laugh as hard as the first time I saw it. Where will you be in 10 years: I will not presume to know. I have been handed enough life experience to be keenly aware that this moment is all I’ve got. So while I am here, now, I will love hard, work furiously, extend compassion, embrace others and be present for my life.
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Little talking to his Big Brothers at the Beyond School Walls program.
New Staff Welcome to the team! BBBSAZ is excited to announce the hiring of four new employees and the addition of two ASU interns. For the program department, Tania Gamboa and Terra McShane join the agency as Program Specialists. Tania and Terra will be enrolling volunteers, interviewing families and making and supporting matches. Karen Staley joined us as Vice President of Development and Marketing. Most recently, Staley served as Director of Development and Alumni Programs with Phoenix College. Prior to that position Staley served as Executive Director of Community Health Charities of Arizona for over five years. CEO and President, Laura Capello is excited to welcome Karen, “Her extensive experience within the community will generate significant growth opportunities for recruitment and donor relations - which means more deserving kids will get the mentors they’ve been waiting for.” Former Events Manager Jessica Whitney has returned from maternity leave to accept a new position as Director of Development. Taking on more responsibility, Jessica will still play a major role in events but will also make serious contributions to other fundraising goals. Two Master of Social Work interns from ASU, Steve Smith and Thaddaeus Gassie, will be working with Terri Waibel for the next two semesters assisting with parent/child and volunteer interviews, obtaining references and completing surveys. Thaddaeus and Steve will be managing all annual updates for Littles and Thaddaeus will be managing and enrolling students for the AAA program.
Think BIG - New and Improved We are pleased to say that we have launched our new Think BIG website designed exclusively for our Bigs to find activities to do with their Littles. All activities are geared toward the following five key areas: Education/Career Development, Risk Avoidance, Healthy Living, Community Involvement, and Cultural Experiences. In short, fun with a purpose!! The Think BIG program and new website makes it much easier for Bigs to get and stay connected with our various community partners, many of which offer ongoing deals that add value to our BBBSAZ Membership Cards. Another cool aspect of our new Think BIG site is the “BIG Shout Outs” Section. Here, our Bigs can put up a special message and photo, personally thanking our community
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partners for providing discounted or free services to our matches. An example is below:
Big Shout Outs “My Little and I had such a blast at our first Painting with a Twist class this weekend! It was a fun environment and it was really great to see her express herself creatively. We can’t wait to use this partnership deal over and over again! Thank you!”
www.thinkbigaz.org
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Jeremiah prepping his paint bucket at a volunteer Think Big activity.
Match Story Ray Kearns and Jeremiah Meet Little Brother Jeremiah and Big Brother (BB) Ray Kearns. Ray and Jeremiah have been matched since 2011 and will celebrate their 4th anniversary in February 2015. When asked why Ray became a BB he said that he knew it was a good program, but just kept putting off getting involved. It wasn’t until his wife gave him an extra nudge that Ray actually called BBBSAZ and started the volunteer process. Ray says this about the delay, “Knowing what
I know now, I regret not doing it sooner!” Reanna, Jeremiah’s mother, is so thankful for Ray’s influence in Jeremiah’s life and shares what their match means to her: • BBBSAZ: What activities does Jeremiah enjoy doing with Ray? MOM: Jeremiah loves helping Raymond complete projects at home, like painting, yard stuff, etc. It teaches him about helping others and completing a task. He also loves going golfing and playing laser tag. They have done numerous events and Jeremiah always comes home excited. • BBBSAZ: Why did you want Jeremiah to have a Big Brother? MOM: I wanted Jeremiah to have a Big Brother because he does not have a father and his two older brothers don’t have a lot of patience with him. He often feels left out or that he’s too young to participate in events that they do.
Ray and Jeremiah
• BBBSAZ: Do you feel that Jeremiah has more confidence knowing that Ray is there for him?
MOM: Jeremiah definitely has better self-esteem and more confidence. Having Ray around has opened up his personality more and he seems much happier overall. Jeremiah has also learned to have trusting relationships outside the immediate family. BBBSAZ is grateful to volunteers like Ray, who put indecision aside to make a real impact on the life of child! Jeremiah and Mom can’t thank Ray enough and will forever recognize his positive influence in Jeremiah’s life. Would you or someone you know make a good Big Brother? We have 300 “Jeremiahs” waiting for their own Big Brother. Please check out www.bbbsaz.org/volunteer.
Program Update Youth Served From 7/1/2014
Total Youth Served : 1,072 New Matches Made: 60 Current Active Matches: 925 The graph shows the total 177 number of youth served in our fiscal year to date in both community and site-based programs.
Site Based
895
Community Based
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Match at As You Wish painting
Big Tips for Matches Sticking With Your Match Most volunteers in our program begin their match with high hopes of changing a child’s life. It is encouraging to think of improved academic progress, higher self-esteem and close relationships. But, what if this doesn’t happen right away? For a short time, one of our long time Big Sisters, Jane Coulson, struggled with this concern. The match wasn’t always connecting and her Little Sister seemed quiet. “There were so many times that I was concerned that my Little Sister didn’t really want to be in the program anymore and was just afraid to tell me. I didn’t think we were making a connection and I wasn’t too sure about the program.” BS Jane With the support of her Program Specialist, Jane kept working at her match, hoping that things would get better; and, they did. But it took a while. “This is the part that I needed time to really understand - you are making a much bigger difference in the child’s life than they let on. And sometimes the child just doesn’t know how to say it.” BS Jane Jane recently attended Mentor Meet Up, one of our regular volunteer training sessions. She had the opportunity to connect with other Bigs and hear their stories. Listening to their experiences gave her the insight that most match relationships have similar journeys. “One reason I was so glad I went to Mentor Meet Up is that it was really interesting to hear from other Bigs, especially to see how parallel our experiences are... and to hear that other Bigs get that feeling, especially in the beginning. I think it takes a while to really bond with your little.” BS Jane Now having been matched for more than five years, Jane enjoys sharing what she’s learned. When asked what she might suggest to other Bigs, she offers, “Be sure to speak to the child as a friend, and not a parent. You are a friend in their life, so treat them as such. You will earn their trust more that way.” In addition, Jane adds that being committed to the program is very important for success “The most important thing is to stick with it, don’t give up on them. I would hate to think that someone might give up, even after a year or so, when a child really needs you, but just doesn’t know how to express it.” By: Terri Waibel, LMSW Training & Child Safety Specialist
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Match eating at Raising Cane’s
Tax Credit
Partnership Update
did you know
Valley of the Sun United Way Since 1925, Valley of the Sun United Way has been uniting diverse partners and bringing together donors, business supporters, non-profits, government and faith-based communities to build a stronger Valley for us all. To accomplish this, United Way is keenly focused on achieving three Community Objectives: • • •
Ensure Children and Youth Succeed End Hunger and Homelessness Increase the Financial Stability of Families and Individuals
United Way is the largest investor in health and human services in the Valley. With the support of more than 90,000 individual donors, 700 business supporters, and a wide array of volunteers and partners, they effectively create change on two levels: • •
Drive systemic change that impacts entire communities Transform individual lives every day
Valley of the Sun United Way has become synonymous with caring and helping children, families and individuals. But they can’t do it alone. That’s why they’re engaging partners within our community such as Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arizona to provide innovative solutions to some of the Valley’s most critical challenges. One of their community objectives is ensuring that youth succeed in the Valley and Big Brothers Big Sisters leads the way through successful mentoring programs.
We are indebted to our grantors for their ongoing support!
• Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust • APS • Executive Council Charities
Dec. 31st
donations are
eligible for the
Arizona state
charitable
tax credit Donate
here
k than you
Grant Update Recently, BBBSAZ has been awarded grants from the following:
from now till
• • • •
RICO - Maricopa County Attorney’s Office Grant Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona John C. Lincoln John F. Long Foundation www.bbbsaz.org | September/October 2014 7
1010 E. McDowell Rd. Suite 400 Phoenix, AZ 85006 www.bbbsaz.org • 602-264-9254 • TTY 800-367-8939 • facebook.com/helparizonayouth
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