Big Brothers Big Sisters of Colorado

At Big Brothers Big Sisters of Colorado (bbbsc), we are dedicated to creating and supporting mentoring relationships that ignite the inherent potential of youth. Our programs connect young people (littles) with caring adult mentors (bigs) through both one-to-one and peer-to-peer mentorship models, providing individualized guidance and encouragement tailored to each mentee's unique journey. Through over 39,042 volunteer hours, valued at 1.4 million, our mentors provided personalized, one-to-one support and shared experiences that build confidence and spark potential. Though the irs does not allow the reporting of the value of these volunteer-provided services in our financial statements, these services are critical to the bbbsc mentoring program operations. When the reported program-related expenses are combined with the volunteer-provided added value, our program-related expenses equal 73% of our total expenditures. Programs: empowering youth, transforming lives - in fy2024, bbbsc mentored 1,534 youth across Colorado, directly impacting the lives of youth, their families, and their communities. Our mentoring relationships supported 86% of high school littles in our programs to pursue higher education, 91% of littles feeling a strong sense of closeness to their bigs, reinforcing the value of meaningful, sustained relationships, 96% of youth feeling accepted by their peers, a testament to the program's role in building social- emotional confidence, and 87% of youth maintaining or improving their academic performance, with 92% affirming the importance of their mentor in their personal growth. Expanding resources to build future leaders - in 2024, bbbsc celebrated littles graduating from high school-many of whom were the first in their families to reach this milestone. In addition to fostering academic and personal growth, we provided vital resources to support mentees and their families, including backpacks filled with school supplies, resource referrals for clothes, medical care, counseling, furniture, and other essential needs, family support to ensure mentoring relationships remain strong and meaningful, and post-secondary planning to help students prepare for life after high school. Our vision for Colorado's future - at bbbsc, we believe that investing in mentorship is an investment in the future of Colorado. A recent economic impact study revealed that every 1 invested in bbbsc mentoring programs generates an estimated 3 in economic and social benefits for the community. These benefits include higher graduation rates, increased lifetime earnings, and reduced reliance on public assistance programs.