MEmories From BigsNBC Past

A Blog Post by Tim Bennett

It was June 22nd, 2006. The movie Click starring Adam Sandler, was opening in theatres, and Shakira's Hips Don't Lie blared on the radio as the number #1 hit on the Top 40 charts. It was also the day that I walked into the Big Brothers Big Sisters office for the first time. It's crazy to sit here and reflect on where we were that summer day compared to where the agency is today. Some things never change; we are still trying to sell raffle tickets and are stressing about the upcoming fundraiser. However, there is also so much that has changed. Our logo and branding have changed a few times, the needs of our children, youth and families are increasing, and the amount of grey hair on my head is multiplying quickly.

Staffing:

Back in 2006, the agency had a total of ten staff. Five people worked in the office and five at Big Deals, a thrift store operated by the agency to help generate revenue for our programs. Today our staff is approaching thirty caring and incredible people. We have ten team members who work out of the office and twenty who work as child care providers and drivers.

Programs:

Our programs have also transformed over the past sixteen years. We have evolved our group programming to meet the changing needs of the children in our community and region. Our In-School Mentoring program grew to introduce our Teen Mentoring Program. We now match students in Grade 10 – 12 to mentor children at a local elementary school. Our agency needed to pivot in 2020 as a response to COVID-19, and we developed virtual programming to keep kids connected. In 2021 we also accelerated our regional expansion to bring programming to the City of Prince Rupert. Through our Connect Program and a new partnership with Friendship House, we will support over 200 Prince Rupert youth in 2022.

Fundraising:

The need for fundraising has not changed. If anything, it has intensified as we face the challenge of increased costs and more competition for funds. My first job with BIGS was to coordinate the annual fundraising campaigns. At that time, our largest events of the year were Bowl for Kids and our ATV Raffle. Since then, we retired Bowl for Kid's Sake, retired the ATV Raffle, brought it back, retired it again, and then brought it back. We now celebrate the importance of Pink Shirt Day, host a large glow-in-the-dark tournament and celebrate mentoring with our annual Gala.

Community Support:

One thing that hasn’t changed over the past sixteen years is the fantastic support we get from the community. Whether through volunteerism, donations or sponsorships, the community steps up time and again to help us unlock the power and potential of our community’s youth.

Tim Bennett
Executive Director, BigsNBC