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The BIG News
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio |
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Our Project Mentor Seniors Graduated! |
Wow! We are very proud of our 2013 graduating Project Mentor seniors! Some of them are pictured in the photo above, which was taken at the Project Mentor Volunteer Luncheon in May. At the podium in this very special photo is Project Mentor Graduating Senior Shareeque, who received enthusiastic applause when he mentioned his goal to become a U.S. Senator from Ohio! 
Having a mentor helps graduates like Shareeque see a successful future for themselves and understand what it takes to achieve success. We are pleased to report that more than 92% of our Project Mentor students reported improvement in at least one of the categories we measure (2011-2012 school year), and more than 73% reported improvement in two. The categories we measure include social acceptance, scholastic efficacy, educational expectations, academic performance, attitudes toward risky behaviors and parental trust.
Project Mentor, our school-based mentoring collaboration with Columbus City Schools, was launched in 2007. After completing an enrollment process, volunteers receive training from the agency's Mentoring Center of Central Ohio. They are matched with a student at a nearby school, and they meet up for about an hour at the same time each week. Activities designed to help strengthen the match relationship and support the student's academic success are provided by Big Brothers Big Sisters at each program session, and mentors receive ongoing coaching and support.
Mentors come from more than 80 Project Mentor Volunteer Partners, including businesses, community and faith-based organizations, and government, plus the community at large. We urge you to volunteer to become a part of Project Mentor! And if you are already matched with a student, please spread the word! |
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Come Grow With Project Mentor! | |
This summer is special at Easton Town Center for more reasons than the great sales offered by merchants! As one of six charities designated as Change for Charity recipients by the Easton Community Foundation, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio has the opportunity to recruit mentors for Project Mentor during the summer months. At busy times in the Easton Station Building near the AMC Theatre, the Easton Community Booth will be staffed by AmeriCorps Service Members and Big Brothers Big Sisters to recruit mentors for the 2013-2014 school year.
"It is important for us to make new matches as early as possible in the school year," says Abby Fisher, Assistant Vice President of School-based Mentoring. "That way, the relationship has as much opportunity as possible to develop and strengthen before summer...and helps us reach our goals of developing longer, stronger matches with the most positive impact possible!"
Now is the time to volunteer for the 2013-2014 school year! It takes only about one hour a week, and mentors tell us they develop their own skills in listening, communication, persuasian, humility and diversity, all important skills in their work and personal lives. For more information about how you or your company or organization can GROW with Project Mentor, please visit the Project Mentor website or call us at (614) 839-2447, ext. 173. Or while you're out visiting the great merchants at Easton Town Center, stop by the Community Booth, which is close to the Directory Kiosk near the AMC Theatre in the Station Building.
To stay on top of what we're doing at Easton, like our BIGSatEaston Facebook Page. 
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| Campers Travel in Style | |
Have you seen our snazzy new van around town? We are using it to transport our Camp Oty'Okwa campers, and you can't miss the bright yellow van with purple Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio logos. Special thanks to our friends at Safelite, who made this amazing new van possible.
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Over the Edge for Kids' Sake | |
It's a bird, it's a plane...no, it's an Edger??? Yes, we went Over the Edge for Kids' Sake on June 21, with Media/VIP Day on June 20. Thanks to all of our Edgers who committed to raise $1,500 to secure a spot on the ropes. Thanks, too, to everyone who kept their feet on the ground and cheered them on. Our sports teams were well represented...Crash, Lou Seal, Crew Cat and Stinger all attracted a lot of attention while they descended!
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About Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio | |
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio, a United Way member agency, has been matching children with mentors since 1933. The third-largest Big Brothers Big Sisters agency in the country, we serve thousands of children each year through our community-based mentoring program, school-based mentoring program (including Project Mentor) and mentoring programs at Camp Oty'Okwa in the Hocking Hills. We serve children in Franklin, Delaware, Union, Clark, Madison and Champaign Counties through our offices in Columbus, Delaware, Marysville and Springfield plus Camp Oty'Okwa. In addition, our Mentoring Center of Central Ohio is helping increase the quality and quantity of mentoring throughout Ohio. Big Brothers Big Sisters makes meaningful, professionally-supported matches between volunteers and children. We provide ongoing evaluation and support which independent studies prove have positive impacts: helping children perform better in school, avoid violence and illegal activities, and have stronger relationships with their parents and others. Learn more at bbbscentralohio.org, projectmentorcolumbus.org, campotyokwa.org, amachiohio.org and mentoringcenterco.org. |
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Did you know Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio leads a collaborative of Ohio Big Brothers Big Sisters agencies serving children of incarcerated parents (Amachi Ohio), and also foster care youth (Connecting the Dots)? Both of these programs help Ohio kids who face additional challenges in their lives. A recent independent study by Public/Private Ventures found that higher-risk youth like these who were paired with mentors reported better grades, greater acceptance by peers and fewer depressive symptoms. Mentoring works! Special thanks to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services for providing funding for these important programs!
FOOTBALL AND FUN!
Our friends at Outreach Promotional Solutions are planning a very special Tailgate For Charity event on August 25, and the funds raised will benefit three charities, including Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio. They are planning lots of fun, including games, raffles and silent auction events...all to put you in the football spirit for this fall and give back to our community! For more information, please click here.
ENJOY THE BEAUTY OF CAMP OTY'OKWA
Fall and winter are special seasons at Camp Oty'Okwa, and we have two great events for you to put on your calendar now! On October 20, award-winning naturalist and photographer Tom Hissong's program called "Travels of a Naturalist" will take you on a special trip of beauty and wonder. And on December 14, we are holding one of our favorite events, "Holidays in the Country". For more information and links to purchase tickets for both events, please click here and visit the Camp Oty'Okwa website. Proceeds from these events will enable more children to experience Camp Oty'Okwa programs! |
SPECIAL THANKS
AmeriCorps Service Members make a huge difference for the kids we serve! Our special thanks go to ServeOhio, Ohio's commission on service and volunteerism, which administers the grants that make this possible. One group of talented and dedicated AmeriCorps Service Members completed their service with Project Mentor this summer, and new Members will be joining soon. They'll be found supporting and sustaining mentoring matches and recruiting more volunteers for our programs! |
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