News

We hope you will consider a donation to our The BIG Give Challenge on #GivingTuesday, December 2nd, and help to match 15 local children with new mentors. You can either donate to our agency page or select from one of our Bigs or supporters personal pages that includes photos & stories.  New this year-  donate $25 and you will receive a beautiful BBBSEC Snowflake Ornament!  Be sure to let your friends know that you have donated through The BIG Give Challenge by using #GivingTuesday on Facebook or Twitter!

We are excited to announce that five of the beautiful Art of Friendship pieces, created by are Bigs & Littles, are now available as note cards!  This wonderful project was sponsored by the Philanthropic Committee at Ingram Micro.  A BIG thank you for their support of our Bigs & Littles expressing themselves creatively and for sponsoring this unique project!   You can have a note card set of your very own for a $5.00 donation to BBBSEC.  With the inside blank, they make wonderful all occasion cards!  You can learn more about getting a set of your very own by clicking here.  We are also looking for opportunities to “set up shop” at local companies and events. Additionally, the cards make a great added bonus…

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Erie County was one of nine local organizations recently awarded a Mentoring Matters grant through the First Niagara Foundation. The awards were announced during a ceremony at the First Niagara Center on October 3rd that included First Niagara executives, local officials and Buffalo Sabres Coach, Ted Nolan. First Niagara employee and BBBSEC Big Sister, Patty Szwed, shared her positive experience as a mentor to her 11 year old Little Sister Reina during the event. The two will be matched for one-year at the end of October! Launched in 2007 by First Niagara, Mentoring Matters supports programs that help children improve their grades and school attendance, enhance their self-esteem, avoid the dangers of drugs and alcohol, and have a better opportunity…

A BIG thanks to all of the UB Football fans that stopped by our table today to participate in the Best College Football Movie vote.  And the UB Fan Favorite College Football Movie is…The Blind Side! Congrats to Laureen Mislan winner of the movie package and certificate good for a future UB Bulls Football Game. Thanks again for participating!  Please visit the other pages of our website to learn more about how we are providing volunteer mentors to help children facing adversity succeed. 

The latest The Big News– Print Edition is now available for Download.  Readers will enjoy a note from our CEO, information about recent Big & Little match events and updates on agency fundraisers that help to make our work possible.  Additionally, we have a list of all of our Bigs & Littles that celebrated Match Anniversaries between January 2014 – June 2014 including over 20 matches that have been together 5+ years.  Lastly, this edition’s Match Highlight features Big Brothers Sean Myers and Little Brother Conyai.  The two have been matched since July of 2012 and have an incredible friendship. Read all about it by downloading now!  [wpdm_file id=10]  

On Thursday, April 10th, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Erie County (BBBSEC) will host “Women Who Move the City” at Pearl @ The Webb.  This new fundraising event will celebrate BBBSEC’s female volunteers, as well as, women who volunteer throughout WNY. Five local women, selected through a nomination process, will be honored during the evening for their outstanding commitment to our community.  The 2014 Women Who Move the City awardees to be recognized at the April 10th event are: Mary Lynn Barnhard– Wheels with Wings Foundation Lindsay Brick-Junior League of Buffalo, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of WNY, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Ronald McDonald House Charities of WNY Sheila Figel- Big Brothers Big Sisters of Erie County, Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Women’s Association Kathleen Maxian- Western New York Ovarian…

Our BIG Give campaign has officially kicked off!  The BIG Give is an online fundraising effort of current Big Brothers and Big Sisters to help raise the funds necessary to move more kids off the waiting list into matches with Bigs of their very own.  For every $1,000.00 raised, we can match a new Big & Little together!  Visit The BIG Give page to pledge a Big Brother or Big Sister you know or donate to our general BIG Give fund. Thanks!!

A BIG thank you to all of the individuals who learned more about BBBSEC at our 1st Grooming Men of the Future Barbershop Recruitment Event.  We had 50 men complete entries in the raffle and 20 indicated they want more interest in becoming Big Brothers.  A special thank you to our partners Alpha Phi Alpha, Styles of Man, Signature Cutz and our media sponsor the Challenger Community News.

In an effort to recruit more male mentors, we will be holding our first barbershop volunteer recruitment event “Grooming Men of the Future” on Saturday, September 28th from 11am – 3pm at three barbershops located in the City of Buffalo. The event is an opportunity for men to stop by in a relaxed & familiar setting to learn more about becoming a Big Brother from Big Brothers Big Sisters fraternity partner Alpha Phi Alpha. The barbershops opening their doors that day to BBBSEC are Styles of Man on East Delavan and the Signature Cutz locations on Main Street and Grant Street. Men who stop down that day will be entered to win a cut from a barber of their choice at each shop and into…