Big Sister Boston and Milk Street Kitchen are continuing their virtual event offerings into 2022 and letting our matches take advantage of this! Littles aged 13 or older and their Big can join Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Kitchen for free virtual zoom events each month open to all Big Brothers Big Sisters of America affiliates!

April: There's a pro baker in all of us. Join us to find your inner baker as we make the perfect chocolate cake!

May: Spice-up your snack game with the Milk Street Cooking School!

Welcome to a whole world of fun, learning, and resources - The Little Big Virtual Academy!

The Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Minnesota team has compiled a list of fun and interactive activities and resources for Littles and Bigs to do together (either in-person or virtually) click here to check it out!

Youthbuild is for youth and young adults interested in Construction. Career Solutions Minnesota Youthbuild program's purpose is to provide youth ages 16-21 with an opportunity to learn construction trades while contributing to their community. Specialized training in the building trades develops participant's construction skills while helping communities expand or improve housing for economically disadvantaged populations and the homeless.

Minnesota Afterschool Advance (MAA) helps Minnesota families who meet income requirements use the powerful but underutilized Minnesota K-12 Education Tax Credit to help them pay for educational afterschool programs like tutoring, music lessons, and art classes.

MAA pays 75% of the eligible education expenses for activities, up to $1,000 per child in grades K-12. For example, if an activity costs $200, we’ll pay $150, and you pay only $50! Please click here for more information.

Maple Syrup Tour - Wildwood Ranch Maple Syrup has been a family-run modern maple syrup operation for over 40 years. Open House Tours of the maple syrup process are scheduled for March 27 and April 3. The tours are free, but registration is required. Please click here to register.

Spring Family Food Truck Festival - Miller Auto is hosting another Food Truck Festival on April 9th! Come with your families and enjoy a good variety of Food Trucks along with kids activities....yes...they will have some things for the adults as well! Please click for here for more information.

The Wilder Side of Nature - Introducing The UMN Raptor Center's new free virtual talk series. Please click here for times and registration.

March 23rd - Sentinels of the See and Sky. Join us as look to marine mammals of the sea (seals and sea lions) and to raptors of the sky (bald eagles and peregrine falcons) to learn more about our shared environment and the overall health of our ecosystems.

April 13th - Growing Up Can Be Hard to Do. Join us as we bring together baby medical experts in both the human and avian worlds and look at just what those most important development times are and what life, especially in that first year, looks like.

The Match Discount Partners list has been recently updated! Check out all of the great ideas for your Match here! Here are two of our newest match discount partners!

Riddler's Escape - Use promo code NONPROFITFUN for 20% off entire booking. For groups bigger than 10 players, call ahead to set up two rooms.

Stearns History Museum - Bigs & Littles receive free admission.

For this new year encourage your friends & family to BE BIG IN 22. We are looking for more Bigs to ignite the potential of our youth. Click here to get started today!

Obtaining a college credential is critical for future career opportunities and total life-time earnings. This new program will provide eligible Minnesotans with a tuition-free pathway for earning a certificate, diploma, associate’s degree, or bachelor’s degree at any public institution in the state. The grants are available starting spring 2022 through 2024 OR until all funds are dispensed, whichever comes first. Please click here for eligibility and application process.

Application deadline is April 1. Please click here for eligibility requirements and application process.

Please visit our BBBS Website to view resources and information for parents/guardians & Bigs including mentoring videos and parenting resources. We also have an extensive listing of community resources including tutors, food and housing assistance, and mental health resources. BigDefenders.org

In addition, we also list past issues of the Big Happenings on our website. Please click here to access past issues.

As the school year continues it’s crucial we set students up for success. Around Cloud Tutors continues to provide free, virtual tutoring services to all K-12 students in the greater St. Cloud region throughout the school year. Please click here for link.