BBBS Volunteers Inspire Children to Give Back to the Community

12 year old Kylie Williams daughter of Ken Williams and Kimberly Reynolds, both of Sidney and Julia Pleiman
of Fort Loramie raising funds at our recent bowl for kids sake fund raising event.

BBBS Volunteers Inspire Children to Give Back to the Community

Big Brothers Big Sisters...

The grandparents of 12 year old, Kylie Williams originally enrolled her in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program to enable her to do more activities outside the home. Kylie is the daughter of Ken Williams & Kimberly Reynolds, both of Sidney. Kylie is matched up with volunteer Big Sister, Julia Pleiman of Fort Loramie. The two will soon celebrate their two year anniversary in May.

Julia is a busy health & fitness professional at the Honda Wellness Center in Anna. She first became interested in the program as she wanted the opportunity to give back to her community. Julia has done just that on so many levels. Not only is she impacting the life of her little, she is inspiring Kylie to become active in the community as well. The two have formed a wonderful relationship and have enjoyed a wide range of activities. However, one large component of their activities has been their volunteer work out in the community not only for Big Brothers Big Sisters, but other worthwhile organizations.

One favorite activity for Julia and Kylie is volunteering at the local animal shelter. The pair have logged many hours at the shelter walking the dogs and exercising the cats. Additionally these two have raised funds for the organization through our Bowl for Kids Sake event and helped out at various other events hosted by the local agency. Julia reports that “It has been fun helping Kylie find ways to expand her skills outside of the school setting”. Julia also reports that Kylie is doing well in school this year and often asks her when the next time will be that they can go out and volunteer. This is a relationship that is certainly impacting Kylie in a positive way and shaping the direction of her life.

Retired teacher, Paul Workman of Anna is another volunteer for Big Brothers Big Sisters program that is inspiring his assigned little to positively impact the community. Paul has been an active Big Brother since 2006. During that time he has been matched three times. His most recent match with Wasfie Alshara, son of Jamie Daniel of Sidney, will celebrate their two year anniversary in September of 2012. Paul is a true inspiration to other volunteers within the organization and has a passion for the community and helping others.

Paul and Wasfie enjoy many activities and it is no secret that Paul likes the Ohio State Buckeyes, a passion that Paul shares with Wasfie first hand. These two have traveled Ohio doing a wide range of outings. However, one thing that Paul has done during his outings with Wasfie is to encourage him to volunteer of his time to help out the agency. This pair have sold 50/50 tickets at our Bowl for Kids Sake fund raising event, helped at the Rubber Duck Race, and represented the agency at local parades and festivals. Wasfie has a volunteer Big Brother who has exposed him to so many new opportunities, all while instilling the value of helping others.

In an effort to continue making successful matches such as these, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Shelby and Darke County is making plans for the upcoming fundraising event, 2012 Rubber Duck Race in Sidney. This event will be held on Thursday, June 21st. The Duck launch will be held at 7:30 p.m. at the Geib Pavilion in Tawawa Park.

In conjunction with the duck race, the agency will host the sixth annual Duck N’ Run/Walk 5k race. This race is a part of the Shelby County 5K Tour. The 5k run/walk will be held on the evening of Thursday, June 21st with race time at 8:15 p.m. through scenic Tawawa Park in Sidney. Registration will begin at 7:00 p.m., and a shot-gun start will begin the race at 8:15 p.m.

Last year nearly 3,000 rubber ducks made their way down Mosquito Creek to compete for the many fabulous prizes. This year’s grand prize will be a $1,000 Shopping Spree. Check out the agency website for more information: www.bigbrobigsis-shelbydarke.org.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Shelby & Darke County is a non-profit United Way member, social service agency. Lisa Brown is Executive Director of the agency. The program specializes in matching children facing adversity with adult volunteer Big Brothers and Sisters. These adults provide children with positive role modeling, as well as new educational and social activities. If you would like to make the difference in the life of a child but are unable to volunteer at this time, Big Brothers Big Sisters has many other opportunities throughout the year for others to become involved. Learn more about our agency by logging onto www.bigbrobigsis-shelbydarke.org or calling 937-547-9622 or 937-492-7611.