Local mentors win statewide acclaim as “Big Brother and Big Sister of the Year”

Press release from Big Brother Big Sisters of Buncombe County:

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Western North Carolina is proud to announce local mentors William Dickerson and Lynne Keating as North Carolina’s Big Brother and Big Sister of the Year.

Each year, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America affiliates nominate local mentors to be considered for the Big Brother and Sister of the Year award for their state. A host of criteria are considered in the selection process, including how effective the relationship has been in assisting the child to achieve positive outcomes in the face of obstacles. Each chairperson for each state additionally looks at each “Little” brother or sister’s improvement in social-emotional wellness such as self-confidence and relationships with peers and family as well as how invested and active the nominated “Big” volunteer has been in engaging their community in the mission and work of BBBS.

It’s been five years since Dickerson, a resident of Buncombe County, first met his “little brother” Isiah.

“In these times—when so many things could divide us—being a Big to Isiah has allowed me diversity in life that I cherish to be a part of.”

As a result of their relationship, Isiah has discovered the opportunity to discover his talent in soccer through enrollment in a local soccer league as well as embracing his capacity for academic achievement.

The coming year will be marked with yet another milestone and growth opportunity for Isiah as he steps into The American Adventure Service Corps—a year round program

dedicated to inspiring young people to become compassionate and conscientious community members

Experiencing new things and expanding horizons are common benefits reported by both Bigs and Littles as a result of their match, explains Elizabeth Spaulding, BBBS Program Director of Cashiers, who’s been providing match support for NC’s Big Sister of the Year, Lynne Keating, and her “little sister” Sophie.

“Lynne has been a champion for Sophie, encouraging her and nudging her gently to spread her wings and set her sights high. Their relationship has blossomed with time, and through that, Sophie has become a more independent, confident, vocal, and successful young woman,” says Spaulding.

When they were first matched over three years ago, Sophie’s interest in art quickly became clear to Keating, who found an opportunity to nurture that nascent talent with frequent trips to local art center Bascom.

With Keating’s help, Sophie is now enrolled as an art student at a private school in north Georgia, where she is not only developing her artistic talents, but also discovering opportunities for leadership and project collaboration.

“Not only has Lynne helped me immensely these past couple of years, she’s proven to be an amazing friend,” says Biaso, “She’s never spoken to me as if I were a child. She’s always honest and willing to discuss, which is something I greatly appreciate. I think without Lynne I wouldn’t have been pushed to go out of my comfort zone in many situations, and I don’t think I would have progressed this much as a person without her.”

The National Big Of The Year Selection Committee will announce the National Big Of The Year in April, 2017.

Big Brothers Big Sisters, the nation’s largest donor and volunteer supported mentoring network, holds itself accountable for children in its program to achieve measurable outcomes, such as educational success, avoidance of risky behaviors, higher aspirations, greater confidence and better relationships. Partnering with parents/guardians, schools, corporations and communities, Big Brothers Big Sisters carefully pairs children (“Littles”) with screened volunteer mentors (“Bigs”) monitoring and supporting these one-to-one mentoring matches throughout their course. Big Brothers Big Sisters provides children facing adversity with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one mentoring relationships that change their lives for the better, forever. This mission has been the cornerstone of the national organization’s 100-year history. The local BBBS of WNC agency serves ten counties in WNC and served 1,592 youth in the last fiscal year. The agency provided 636 youth with one-on-one mentoring relationships, and Project MARS/ AmeriCorps provided academic and supportive resources to 956 students in fiscal year ’15-’16.