Fall
2012
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County
Executive Director
Stephanie A. Patka
Program Director
Connie Stalhandske
Program Assistant
Angela Bell
Board of Directors
President
Cyndi Handley
Vice President
Andrew M. Hicks
Secretary
Dr. Gregory Robbins
Treasurer
Kathy Peterson
Todd Blyly
Greg Brown
Ryan Coates
Jason Fink
Roger Garrett
Michele Kulp
Dan McEachern
Blake Romak
Ben Roseland
Bob Schrameyer
Chasity Spansell
Steve Wagner
Billie Jo Wawrzynski
Brock M. Welch
Advisory Board
John Ball
Kevin Brown
Debby Burton
Randy Doering
Craig Fulmer
Debra Hogan
Dean Hupp
Mark Mow
Bob Rininger
Patty Wheeler
Dick Whitcraft
Jeri Yoder-Gluck
Norm Yoder
Oktoberfest
Chili Cook-off & Harvest Celebration
Saturday, October 6th
1:00pm to 7:00pm
in Central Park behind Civic Plaza
Cornhole Tournament ● Family Activities &
Bike Ride ● Live Music ● Hayrides
Creepy Crawly Tent
Chili Tasting 1:00pm to 4:00pm - $5/person
Cornhole Tournament 2:00pm - $40/team
Family Bike Ride - 2:00pm
Mentoring Mums
Along the Riverwalk (between Franklin & High Street) 7,000 pots of mums will be displayed
in a dazzling jewel toned display of color in a supersized flower carpet inspired by historic
designs in the Lerner Theater.
This free display will be from September 19-29 and will be illuminated for night-time
viewing.) After the 29th, mums will be sold for $5 each. Proceeds from this project
support the efforts of Big Brothers Big Sisters and Pillars of Elkhart.
Pre-sale of tickets are available and we will need some assistance. We need
some volunteers during ArtWalk Wednesday (Sept 26 5-8 p.m.) and on the
30th from 10am to 5pm helping with the distribution of the mums. Each
volunteer will get to take a mum home for free. Please contact the office to
help volunteer or to help sell tickets.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County
Up Coming Events
September
3
3
8-9
17
19
23
26
28
30
Monday
Monday
Sat. & Sun.
Monday
Wednesday
Sunday
Wednesday
Friday Saturday
Labor Day - Office Closed
City of Elkhart Labor Day Parade & Celebration
ECP - Bonneyville Mill Celebration
Elkhart County Parks Science Sleuths: Fall Fruit
Free Outdoor Concert Elkhart County Parks Bug Day! Art Walk Wednesday Elkhart County Parks Tree Hike ID
Mums Sale with BBBS & Pillars of Elkhart
Events schedule at www.elkhartindiana.org
@ Bonneyville Mill
9am to 5pm
@Oxbow County Park 1:30-3pm & 4-5:30pm
@NIBCO Water & Ice Park
7:30pm
@Cobus Creek County Park
2pm to 4pm
@SoMa Neighborhood 5pm to 8pm
@Oxbow County Park 6pm to 8pm
@Central Park 10am to 3pm
October
6
Saturday
6
Saturday
15
Monday
19
Friday 19
Friday 19-20 Fri. & Sat.
20 & 21Sat. & Sun.
26 Friday 27
Saturday
26-27 Fri. & Sat.
Oktoberfest with BBBS & Pillars of Elkhart
Elkhart County Parks Bark in the Park ECP - Science Sleuths: Cornhusk Dolls BBBS Fall Dinner Auction
YMCA Fall Festival
Haunted Jail ECP - Gathering at Five Medals ETHOS Science Spectacular
ETHOS Science Spectacular
Haunted Jail @Central Park 1pm to 4pm
@Oxbow County Park 9am to 2pm
@Oxbow County Park 1:30-3pm & 4-5:30pm
@Elcona Country Club 6pm
@ Elkhart YMCA
5pm
@Old County Jail-Goshen
5pm-11pm
@River Preserve County Park 9am to 4:30pm
@2521 Industrial Pkway 4:30pm to 8:30pm
@2521 Industrial Pkway
10am to 4pm
@Old County Jail-Goshen
5pm-11pm
November
7
12
15
22
22
23
Wednesday
Monday
Thursday
Thursday
Thursday
Friday Elkhart Public Library Family Movie Night
Poverty Training (call to sign up)
Elkhart Public Library Bed Time Storytime
Faithmission Turkey Stampede Thanksgiving Office Closed
Thanksgiving Office Closed
December
Save the Date
Annual BBBS Christmas Party
December 9th from 2pm to 4pm
@Main Library @BBBS Office @Cleveland Library
@McNaughton Park
4pm
9am & 6pm
6:00pm
8:30am
For more events check out these websites:
www.elkhartcountyparks.org
www.elkhartindiana.org/parks
www.myepl.org
www.elkhartymca.org
www.ruthmere.org
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County
Match Support Corner
Lives can get busy. So it’s important that relationships
remain a priority, including those between a Big and
Little. Being a Big is more than going on special outings.
It is about spending time together and being part of
each other’s lives. Your everyday activities can expose
your Little to a different lifestyle and an opportunity
to learn new skills and may be the highlight of their
day. Try including your Little in some of the following
activities:
• Preparing a meal - You can teach menu planning,
shopping, preparation, and cleaning up afterwards.
Kitchen conversation can be a great time to catch
up.
• Planning an event - Include your Little in planning
a party or other social event. The Little can help
with invitations, food and beverage preparation,
decorating, and can help host the event!
• Exercising - Jog together at a park, take a bike
ride, a walk together, or get a guest pass for
your gym. Pair this with a healthy snack or meal
and you’ve introduced your Little to some selfconfidence boosters, as well as, how to make and
achieve simple goals.
• Projects around the house - Kids love to learn how
to fix things. This can be as simple as organizing
or touching up paint. Throw in a tasty snack and
maybe a quick board game and you have taught
a valuable skill and shown your Little that they are
important to you!
• Family Events - Holidays, birthday parties, or
simply family get-togethers are an excellent
opportunity for your Little to see your family, learn
more about you and maybe even learn some new
traditions they can try with their own families.
• Volunteering - Bigs already volunteer time (by
being a Big). By including your Little in community
service projects, you can teach you Little the
selfless thrill of helping others and build their selfesteem as well!
• Homework - Help your Little with their homework
and do yours if you have some. Kids love to see
others doing homework too. It demonstrates a
great sense of responsibility.
• Errands - Need to pick up dry cleaning, run to
the bank, or pick up a birthday present? Kids love
seeing their Bigs doing everyday activities like
these. Some have never done these activities with
their own families.
Most important: Do not forget that Littles just want to
spend time with you, so schedule some fun activities
along the way. Also, keep in contact weekly through
phone calls, texts, messages or meetings so long
stretches of time don’t go past without communication.
Letter from the Director
How many times have you heard this
conversation?: “Hi there! How are you
doing?” “Great--I’ve just been so busy!”
We’ve all probably heard this, or used
this response ourselves. And it begs
the question- why are we so busy?
What are we filling our time with?
The truth is that whatever it is
that we are filling our precious time with,
we’ve made a decision to participate
in. Think about it. We are not doing
anything right now that we’ve said “no”
to. So what kinds of things have you
said yes to filling your time with? How
are these things enriching your life and the lives of
those around you?
Chances are you’ve thought about
mentoring a child, but have told yourself
that you are “too busy.” Kids don’t wait
for people to stop being busy to grow up.
There are children who need adults to
take a moment to recognize their worth.
When you mentor a child with Big
Brothers Big Sisters, you are spending
time with a child who is just like you and
enjoys the same sort of activities. So,
take a moment to think about the things
that you love doing, the things that you
are busy with, and ask yourself: Is there
room for one more?
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County
2012 Bigs of the Year
Big Sister of the Year
BS Crystal Miller was matched to Adriaunna Heiser on 12/20/07. They get
together 2-3 times a month for several hours. They enjoy going to movies,
basketball games, Big Brothers Big Sisters events, playing games, crafts,
baking, the zoo, musicals, plays, festivals, out to eat, and making dinner.
Crystal and Adriaunna have developed a very trusting relationship.
Adriaunna sees Crystal as someone that she can confide in and who will
always listen. Crystal has made an effort to always be there for Adriaunna
and their relationship is an excellent example of the power of mentoring.
Big Brother of the Year
BB Brock Welch and Little Brother Damien Jackson were matched on 6/21/07. They
have had a very unique match. Brock was away at college when the match began.
While attending school, he called or emailed his Little Brother every week. At least
once a month, he came home for a visit to see his Little Brother. Now that Brock lives
in Elkhart, they get together weekly for a variety of activities which include going to
ND games, tubing, swimming, soccer, bowling, sledding and playing video games.
Brock loves Damien’s enthusiasm and energy. Damien loves having someone cool
to do stuff with and knowing that he can count on Brock to always be there for him.
Rookie Big Brother of the Year
BB Dale McClosky was matched to LB Quentin Richards on 1/18/12. Before
they were matched Quentin had not experienced much outside of the home.
Since being matched, Quentin has enjoyed a variety of new activities,
including bowling (his favorite), baseball game, soccer game, playing with
Dale’s dogs, going out to eat, shopping, and working on Dale’s truck. They
never run out of things to talk about, and Quentin loves having a fun guy
to spend time with. Dale loves that Quentin truly enjoys trying everything
without hesitation and is very well mannered and polite.
Rookie Big Sister of the Year
BS Samantha Crooks was matched to LS Victoria (Tori) Gamez on
11/1/2011. Samantha and Tori get together every week for a new
adventure! Some of the activities they have enjoyed include: musicals,
plays, dressing up, dinner, playing games, BBBS Ice Skating party, gokarting, mini-golf, bowling, bungee jumping, Build-A-Bear and shopping.
Tori says, “She is like a real sister to me!” Samantha says, “I love
spending time with her. She is so much fun!”
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County
Thank You for your Contributions
Volunteers and
Community Partners
Center for Community Justice
Cori and Madison Sawyer
Elkhart County 4H Fair
Elkhart County Visitor Bureau
Elkhart Luncheon Optimists
Heather King
Indiana State Troopers
John King
Keystone RV Company
Levi King
Nick Golden
Pillars of Elkhart
RSVP of St. Joseph and Elkhart
Counties
WNDU
Donations and
Sponsorships
In Kind Donations
Todd Blyly Family
University of Notre Dame
Eric Irions
$1 to $499
Indiana Community Bank
Elkhart Luncheon Optimists
Become a volunteer with Big
Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart
County. The backbone of the
agency is our supporters. If you
would like to help BBBS please
call the office at 574-875-1039
Volunteer
Opportunities
with Big Brothers Big Sisters
Mentoring Mums
September 26th from 5-8pm
BBBS will have a table in Central
Park during the Art Walk. We are
looking for a few volunteers to
help sell tickets to get mums.
September 30th from 10am to
3pm volunteers will be needed to
help distribute mums in Central
Park. There will be several shifts.
Oktoberfest
Saturday October 6
1pm to 4pm
Volunteers are needed to help
lead family activities including
crafts, games and bounce
house. We will have two
shifts:
12:30-2:30pm and 2:30pm4:30pm.
Fall Dinner
Auction
Friday October 19
4pm to 9pm
We are looking for Bigs to help
at the auction with registration,
Bid Pal Assistance during Silent
Auction, check out and item
pickup. There will be a required
orientation before the auction.
Volunteers will be able to attend
the auction and receive dinner.
If you would like to volunteer for any of these events please call the Angie at the
office 574-875-1039 or email abell@bbbselkhart.org.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County
2012 Fall Dinner Auction
Enjoy a lively evening in support and celebration of successful mentoring
within Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County
Friday October 19, 2012
Cocktail Hour begins at 5:00pm.
Hors D’oeuvres and Silent Auction will commence at 6:00pm
Followed by Dinner and Live Auction
Elcona Country Club
US Hwy 20 East, Elkhart
$65 for Individuals
$500 for a Table of 8 guests
Please visit our website
www.bbbselkhart.org
Food Sponsor
Cocktail Hour
Sponsor
Multi Media
Sponsor
Ed and Janet Bradford
RSVP by
October 12th
574-875-1039
email info@bbbselkhart.org
Corporate Sponsors
Fifth Third Securities, Inc.
Acruity Consulting
Alpha Systems
We are still seeking sponsors and auction donations. If you are interested in sponsoring or
donating to our Fall Dinner Auction please call the office at 574-875-1039.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County
BBBS News
Annual Christmas
Party
We are going GREEN!
Please help us by sending
your email address to info@
bbbselkhart.org to receive
our newsletter via the web!
Thank you Keystone RV
Company!
Sunday December 9th
2pm to 4pm
at Signature Lanes Family Fun
Center
Bowling, Crafts, Cookie
Decorating, Arcade
Must RSVP to attend.
Please call or email Angie
at 574-875-1039 or
abell@bbbbselkhart.org.
Summer Picnic 2012
We have free prescription
discount cards available in the
office. If you are interested,
in one feel free to come in or
contact us!
Connect-2-Help
This United Way Partner is a 24 hour service for those that
need help getting information about:
Food, counseling, health care, clothing, employment,
shelter, support groups, volunteering, parenting,
housing, legal aid, recreation, education and more
Dial 2-1-1
www.connect2help.org
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County
Big Brothers Big Sisters
of Elkhart County, Inc.
59029 CR 13
Elkhart, IN 46517
PRSRT STD
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
SOUTH BEND, IN
PERMIT NO. 7
Building relationships between role models and children in need of friendship and guidance.
Be a Mentor, Change a Life
Become a Big Brother or
Big Sister
Help us
Match 12 New
Volunteers with
Local Children
574-875-1039
www.bbbselkhart.org
email info@bbbselkhart.org
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County