What Impact does Big Brothers Big Sisters have in the community?
BBBS mission is to “Provide children facing adversity with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one relationships that change their lives for the better, forever.”
A recent study shows that children mentored through Big Brothers Big Sisters are:
• 46 percent less likely to begin using drugs.
• 75 percent more likely to have received a four-year college degree.
• 39 percent more likely to have current household incomes of $75,000 or higher.
• Most “littles” show improved school performance and improved relationships at home.
For more information on how you can partner with Kansas Big Brothers Big Sisters, go to www.kansasbigs.org, then click on Barton or Pawnee county or call 620-797-5005.
For local information, contact Diane Shoemaker at dshoemaker@ksbbbs.org or 620-603-3888.
Shoemaker new BBBS area director
Diane Shoemaker has taken over the helm of the local Big Brothers Big Sisters agency, serving as its new area director. Based in Great Bend, she has held the post for just over a month.
She moved to Great Bend just over a year ago, along with her husband, Phil, who is the volleyball coach at Barton Community College. Their son Tanner is a student-athlete on the baseball team at BCC.
“I grew up on a farm north of Wichita, attending Remington High School, so I know and like rural areas,” she said. After spending almost 13 years in Fairbanks, Alaska, the family moved back to Kansas mainly to be closer to our elderly mothers.
Phil was the University of Alaska volleyball coach there and Diane worked most of that time as sales manager for the largest hotel company in Fairbanks.
“My involvement with Big Brothers Big Sisters goes back to my college days at Wichita State University when I was a Big Sister for about four years” she said. “I have always been impressed by the program and have seen first-hand what a difference you can make in the life of a child.”
BBBS has statistics that show the incredible effect a mentor can make in the life of a child, she said. “It’s very rewarding. I had already planned to get another Little Sister as soon as my son moves away in the fall to finish his college degree.”
Head basketball coaches Gregg Marshall, Wichita State University, Bill Self, University of Kansas and Bruce Weber, Kansas State University, are joining local Kansas Big Brothers Big Sisters officials in urging participation in the upcoming Bowl for Kids’ Sake. The idea is to boost awareness of the positive impact of and urgent need for mentoring Kansas kids.
Great Bend-based area BBBS Director Diane Shoemaker said the pivotal fundraising campaign brings colleagues, friends and families together to form teams and raise pledges. The event is set for Sunday, April 27.
“Basically it is our main fundraiser of the year, generating about a third of our operating budget,” Shoemaker said. “All monies raised at our event stay in Barton/Pawnee county and this event also recruits the most new ‘big’ volunteers and raises awareness of the need for mentors.”
After funds are raised, participants will come together on that Sunday afternoon at Walnut Bowl in Great Bend to celebrate their success. Bowling times will be assigned later.
During the event, teams and individuals will be recognized for their total funds raised or pledges received, Shoemaker said. In addition, there will be food and beverages, as well as prize presentations.
“The bowling is the reward, not the mechanism to raise volunteers or funds,” says Tammy Bouchér, development associate, BBBS. “But it’s certainly important to celebrate the additional number of kids served as we partner together with community members and businesses.”
A special “Go Big or Go Home” T-shirt is the reward for each bowling team member that raises at least $150, their choice of team helps decide which coach wins the challenge.
KSBBBS currently serves nearly 6,000 kids statewide through supported one-to-one mentoring relationships. However, there is an urgent need to support 4,000 children who are still on the waiting list for a Big Brother or Sister. “When I learned that 80 percent of these kids served come from families living at or below the poverty line, I knew it was a priority for me to get involved and help make a difference,” Self said.
“Go Big or Go Home” challenges Kansans to step up and serve as a mentor in a child’s life,” said Weber. “Having 4,000 Kansas children waiting for a mentor is simply unacceptable. I’m proud to join as a co-chair of this campaign and help put a major dent in that number.”
“I was shocked to hear that 61 percent of these kids come from families with substance abuse backgrounds and 25 percent have had or has a parent who has been incarcerated,” said Marshall. I’m happy to be working with coaches Self and Weber to make a positive impact on the future of our most vulnerable Kansas kids.”
During the campaign, participants will be able to select the coach/school of their choice for the “Go Big or Go Home” competition. Funds raised go directly to KSBBBS to provide local kids facing adversity with positive mentoring relationships. KSBBBS will track which coach/school is in the lead for the most pledges and volunteers. At the end of the campaign, a traveling trophy will be awarded to the winning coach.
A needed return
“Kansas BBBS didn’t ‘go away’ in the sense that we’ve still been serving kids in Great Bend,” said Mary Shannon, KBBS chief development officer. “However, without local staff representation, we haven’t been able to grow and serve as many kids that need to be served.”
Shannon said Rita Kurtz, chairman of the local Community Advisory Board here, has done a “stellar job” of managing in a volunteer capacity, while building up to hire staff, and she is doing a tremendous amount to engage Shoemaker with the community.
“Our strategic plan vetted by the Kansas BBBS Board of Directors calls for us to serve 10,000 kids statewide by the year 2020,” Shannon said. “When we are serving 10,000 kids, the reality is that we will then be serving only 20 percent of the kids who have been identified who are greatly in need of one-to-one mentoring.”
“In order to remove children from our waiting list, we need to recruit volunteer mentors and raise the dollars to support those matches as our program is monitored by experienced, trained case managers, which is one of the primary reasons our measurable outcomes are so strong.”
“I think it looks like there hasn’t been a Bowl for Kids’ Sake for a couple of years, since there was no director for this area,” Shoemaker said. “The board did a great job of keeping the matches going, but we have to have fundraisers, since each match cost about $1,000 per year to maintain.”
For more information on Bowl for Kids’ Sake, visit www.kansasbowl.org.
