Big Brothers Big Sisters helps children realize their potential and build their futures.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Minnesota is a mentoring organization that pairs volunteer mentors with kids around Central Minnesota who need an extra support system in their lives. The mission: to create and support one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite the power and promise of youth.
Since 1969, Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) of Central Minnesota has believed that in every child is the potential to succeed and thrive. Students at Pierz Schools are matched together to make meaningful, positive connections. BBBS of Central MN serves youth between the ages of 5 and 21 across a five-county service area: Stearns, Benton, Sherburne, Morrison, and northern Wright County.
This is such an important program because sometimes kids need an extra friend or support system in their lives to boost their self-esteem and give them the confidence they need to succeed in school or in sports, to build better communication with their family and friends, or just to develop into the person they want to be.
Pierz currently has 47 matches (mentor/mentee pairs). Of those 47 Bigs (mentors), 45 are students at Healy High School, and two are adults from around the Pierz community. Littles in the program range in age from 5-14, and high school Bigs are freshmen through seniors.
And the benefits behoove both the Bigs and the Littles. Ninety-one percent of mentees improved their social competence and 84 percent improved their grades and academic performance. Of our high school Bigs surveyed, 100 percent improved their communication skills, and 96 percent improved their sense of responsibility.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Minnesota are looking for Littles and Bigs (high school and adult) in Pierz, with the greatest need for the 2024-25 school year being male Bigs.
No special skills are needed to be a mentor – just a desire to help others and spend a few hours each month with a new friend. Our matches do all sorts of activities. When matches hang out during the school day at Pierz Schools, they play games, do arts and crafts, read books, go outside or to the gym to play sports, or just hang out and talk.
Additionally, high school Bigs and Littles in our program are eligible for scholarships, and three Pierz students have been the recipients of those scholarships in the past few years.
Have questions? Want to become a Big? Or have a Little in need of extra support that a Big can offer? Contact Raquel Minkel, Program Coordinator in charge of the Pierz program at Raquel@BigDefenders.org or 320-241-7996.
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