January 21, 2004

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Departments

• Big & Little Milestones
• Match Activities & Ideas
• Mentor’s Tip of the Week

Stories

• Join the BBBS Centennial Celebration
• “Bigs of the Year” Honored
• President Bush Supports Mentoring
• New & Improved Bowl For Kids’ Sake

Join the BBBS Centennial Celebration

Join the year-long celebration of 100 years of “Bigs” and “Littles” – all those who have experienced the joy of Big Brothers Big Sisters.  BBBS of America is commemorating our 100th anniversary by launching a virtual reunion in collaboration with Yahoo! to reunite former Bigs and Littles and champion our vision of serving one-million “at-risk” youth nationally by 2010. Click here to learn more.

“Bigs of the Year” Honored

Four outstanding volunteer youth mentors were honored recently by BBBS of Greater Pittsburgh.  Chosen from among 872 similar BBBS’ volunteers throughout Allegheny, Washington and Greene Counties, they were recognized for their exemplary efforts as a friend, role model and mentor to local youth.  The following individuals were named “Bigs of the Year”:

•  “Big Brother of the Year” James M. Faber with Little Brothers Lindsay and Dayne, both age 15, matched since 1996.

• “Big Sister of the Year” Stacie L. Amorose with Little Brother England, age 10, matched since 2001.

• “Big Couple of the Year” Dick & Dottie Fleming with Little Brother Cameron, age 15, matched since 2000.

• “School-based Big of the Year” Robert J. Klan with Little Brother Emilio, age 12, matched since 2001.

click here to read more!

President Bush Supports Mentoring

National Mentoring Month (NMM) 2004 is in full swing across the country, including Southwestern Pennsylvania.  The primary objective of NMM is to focus public attention on the power of mentoring. Mentoring Partnerships around the country are using this annual celebration to spotlight the positive impact that mentoring is making on young lives. Through the media, special events and speeches, mentors and mentees are sharing their experiences and inviting other adults to make the commitment to youth. As part of NMM activities, U.S. President George W. Bush issued a proclamation on January 9 in support of youth mentoring.  Click here to read the president’s proclamation.

New & Improved Bowl For Kids’ Sake

Bowl For Kids’ Sake (BFKS) is gearing up for a fantastic campaign in March with four BFKS Community Day events taking place on each Sunday during the month.  But this isn’t your father’s BFKS!  This year’s BFKS will be more fun and exciting, and filled with a lot of surprises that you won’t want to miss.  Remember, BFKS is not about bowling.  It’s all about having fun with your family and friends in support of BBBS.  Click here to see what’s new this year.

click here to read more!

• BS Elise Eror is very proud of her LS Lena for recently becoming the co-captain of her cheerleading squad at the Word of God School in Swissvale.
• Baldwin High School student and Little Brother Bob attended the EMT program through CCAC at Jefferson Hospital.  He passed the state board exam and is now a certified emergency medical technician.  BB Matt Ruskay is looking forward to Bob’s high school graduation in June and celebrating all of his Little Brother’s many accomplishments.
• BB Kris Mamula is very proud of LB Darven’s success on the Career Connections Charter High School basketball team.  His game-high score is nine points, and he has great speed moving around the court.  Go Coyotes!

This week’s pick for events happening throughout the region is the Pittsburgh Boat Show, January 23-25 & 30-February 1, at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.  Call ahead for times and ticket prices, 412-565-6000.

From the “Guide for New Matches,” we also offer the following wintertime match activity ideas:

• Make a collage together of your Little’s life with pictures and headlines from magazines.
• Plan an imaginary “spring break” vacation together.
• Learn a simple magic trick together.
• Visit the library and look up the newspaper from your Little’s birthday on microfilm.
• Make a calendar with the big events for your Little in 2004.
• click here to read more!

	What are you learning from your Little? It’s no secret that Bigs learn from their Littles.  That being said, sometimes we lose sight of how we’re benefiting from the mentoring relationship with our Littles.  Take time to consider how you, as a Big Brother or Big Sister, are gaining because of your time with your Little.  It’s often the little things in a relationship that get overlooked, even though they can be very obvious. click here to read more!