Mission Statement
Our mission is to provide children with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one relationships that change their lives for the better, forever.
Accountability: by partnering with parents/guardians, volunteers and others in the community we are accountable for each:
- Higher aspirations, greater confidence, and better relationships
- Avoidance of risky behaviors
- Educational success
Outcomes: National research has shown that positive relationships between Littles and their Bigs have a direct and measurable impact on children’s lives. By participating in our programs, Little Brothers and Sisters are:
- more confident
- more likely to steer clear of drugs and alcohol
- doing better in school
- getting along better with their family and friends
- feeling better about themselves
Description
Here at Big Brothers Big Sisters of the 7 Rivers Region we pair caring, responsible adults with children in our community for a one-to-one mentoring relationship. Our goal is to provide children with strong and enduring, professionally supported relationships that change their lives for the better, forever. Independent research, as well as the data that we collect locally, shows that children who are involved with our program have higher aspirations, greater confidence, and better relationships. They are more likely to avoid risky behaviors and to have greater educational success.
Our matches meet once a week, for at least an hour or two, either in the community or at a specific site. Site locations include local schools, after school programs, the Boys and Girls Club and the Ho-Chunk Youth and Learning Center. Our main office is located in La Crosse and from there we serve La Crosse County as well as Stoddard, La Crescent, Hokah, and Sparta. We also have satellite offices in Vernon County, Trempealeau County, and Winona County. Last year our dedicated Bigs positively impacted the lives of 544 children throughout our service area. All of our services are provided free of charge to our children, families, volunteers, and schools/sites.
We match children between the ages of 5 and 14 years old, but once matched a child can stay in the program until they turn 18 or graduate from high school, whichever comes last. Once a match is made the Big, the Little, and the Parent/Guardian receive regular contact and support from our experienced, professional staff. We are there from day one to make sure that everyone is safe, happy, and having fun! At any time a parent, Big or Little can contact our staff if they have questions, concerns, or if they just need some new activity ideas.
Our two biggest needs are volunteers and funding. We currently have over 100 children waiting to be matched in our program and many of them are boys who are only open to being matched with a Big Brother. Unfortunately, we don’t get enough male mentors to come close to meeting the need. For every Big Brother application we receive, we get 10-15 Big Sisters. We are always looking for caring, responsible adults to spend time with a child, especially Big Brothers and Big Couples. Big Couples are two people in a long-term, committed relationship who are matched with a Little Brother who they spend time with each week, as a couple or individually as schedule permit.
For more information about our program and our upcoming events see our website:www.7riversbbbs.org! Feel free to contact us with any questions you might have.
