Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwestern Illinois was founded in 1980 by a group of social workers from the special education district in Belleville and dedicated community volunteers to serve children in St. Clair County. By 2003, the agency expanded services to Clinton, Madison and Monroe counties. In 2008, we expect to match approximately 1030 children with a Big Brother or Big Sister. All children are mentored and become productive, caring members of society. To provide a mentor for every child in Southwestern Illinois who wants and needs one.

Nationally, Big Brothers Big Sisters serves over 200,000 children, ages 6 through 18, in 5,000 communities across all 50 states. Our goal: to serve one million children. Big Brothers Big Sisters one-on-one mentoring helps at-risk youth overcome the many challenges they face. Research by Public/Private Ventures (P/PV) consistently shows that Little Brothers and Little Sisters are:

• 46% less likely to begin using illegal drugs
• 27% less likely to begin using alcohol
• 52% less likely to skip school
• 37% less likely to skip class
• More confident in their schoolwork performance
• Able to get along better with their families

The agency has 18 staff - each with a passion to provide quality services to our children, families and volunteers. Led by the president/CEO and vice-president of programs, the agency provides support to our children, families and volunteers through 13 program staff who recruit, enroll, match and provide support to each one-on-one relationship between a child and volunteer. Also on staff is a counselor who provides assessment and short term counseling services to youth and their families.

Staff and board members share a responsibility to secure the resources needed to create quality relationships between our Bigs and Littles. Fund raising is led by the director of development and marketing, the special events coordinator and the office manager. The 2009 agency budget is $849,000. Funding comes from these sources:

• 5% Tri-Cities United Way (Granite City)
• 7% St. Clair and Clinton counties Mental Health Board
• 18% Contributions - Individuals and Corporations
• 31% Grants - Federal and Foundations
• 37% Special Events - Bowl For Kids Sake, Golf Tournaments and House Raffle
• 2% Interest and Miscellaneous

86% of the donations and funding we receive go directly toward the mentoring programs we provide for our children and their families.

Our two biggest challenges are recruiting volunteers and raising the funds needed to ensure that even more children are served each year.

All matches are carefully screened and supervised by our team of professional social workers. Many things have to happen before we make a match. After they express an interest in our volunteer opportunities, all of our Bigs go through a background check and careful interview process. Then we match Bigs and Littles based on location, personalities and preferences as well as provide full support for our volunteer programs along the way - so that matches can grow into lasting relationships.