Big Brothers Big Sisters: 100 Years of Youth Mentoring Founded in 1904, Big Brothers Big Sisters is the oldest and largest youth mentoring organization in the United States. The organization serves more than 225,000 youth ages five through eighteen in 5,000 communities across the country through a network of 470 agencies across all fifty states. To experience the difference a Big Brother or Big Sister can make, read a real life stories about one of our children right here in middle Tennessee by clicking here. how we came to be.... The local agency was formed through a group of civic leaders and human service professionals who shared a concern and a vision. The concern was for the alarming number of young boys with an absent father who were entering our juvenile justice system. Since 1969, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee has affected the lives of thousands of our community’s children… and we are poised to change more lives in the coming years. Big Brothers Big Sisters’ mission is to help children reach their potential through professionally supported, one-to-one relationships with measurable impact. Matches (the term used to identify adult volunteer Big Brothers or Sisters and their Little Brothers or Sisters) meet weekly and spend time together on all sorts of activities from working on school assignments to attending a sporting event. The specialized program staff screens and evaluates potential adult volunteers, and matches them with a child who shares common interests or goals… and monitor this friendship throughout the length of the match. The children are evaluated to measure their progress in developing Confidence, Competence and Caring. Through this careful supervision, we know that the children in our program have increased self-confidence, show improvement in school performance, and have better interpersonal relationships with their families. Little Brothers and Sisters are also less likely to begin using illegal drugs, consume alcohol, skip school and classes, or engage in acts of violence… and certainly these attributes benefit the entire community. National research further demonstrates the powerful effect that the positive relationships between Big Brothers and Big Sisters and their Littles have a direct, measurable, and lasting impact on children’s lives. and the progress continues… Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee is a growing agency that is expanding its scope and reach to serve every child who wants or needs a mentor in middle Tennessee. Our coverage area includes all of Nashville and Davidson county, but also the contiguous counties and beyond including Robertson, Sumner, Wilson, Rutherford, Williamson, Cheatham, Dickson and Hickman counties. Our region is growing rapidly… and the need for adult mentors and donors is great. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee wants to serve over 2,000 children in the calendar year for 2008. We welcome your support… and hope that the next chapter of our agency history involves you.