Contact Information

Organization:
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Arizona
Contact Name: Veronica Saiz
Telephone: 520-365-2263
Email: veronica@soazbigs.org
Website: https://soazbigs.org

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Arizona’s mission is to create and support one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite the power and promise of youth.

Since 1963, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Arizona has partnered with parents, guardians, volunteers, schools, and others in the community to make meaningful, monitored matches between adult volunteers (“Bigs”) and children (“Littles”), ages 6 through young adulthood.

Each year we provide hundreds of young people who are facing adversity with a stable adult role model. Most of the youth we serve live in poverty, with a single parent, and/or are facing various hardships and trauma. The supportive friendship of an adult mentor provides an environment that enables them to overcome challenges or turn a significant corner in their lives. Bigs and Littles meet roughly once a week for a few hours of time, either out in the community or at school sites, and participate in a variety of activities. Our program managers support each pair by providing ideas for free and low-cost activities. They also oversee and coach each Big/Little pair to ensure that each relationship is safe and meaningful.

After one year in our program, 100% of youth show growth and improvement. We measure this success through an annual Youth Outcomes Survey which tracks a variety of educational, behavioral, and emotional variables. We hold ourselves accountable for each child’s achievement of higher aspirations, greater confidence, better relationships, and educational success.