Big Brothers Big Sisters of Dane County’s annual Gala fundraiser tonight at the Madison Marriott West will be a chance to celebrate the 2019 Bigs of the Year for their commitment and dedication in helping their Littles reach their potential.
“We’ve always had a very large attendance at this event. This is the first year that we’ve actually sold out the event. I think we’re close to 800 people,” BBBS CEO Sandy Morales tells Madison365. “So we’re really excited that so many people have decided to come to the event and support us this year.”
One of the things that is so special about the annual Gala fundraiser, Morales says, is all of the Big and Littles that come together in one location.
“It’s really a great way for folks to connect to our mission,” she says.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Dane County’s mission is to create and support one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite the power and promise of youth.
“One of the things that we’ll talk about at the Gala is what we call ‘the big wait’ in terms of what does waiting look for for a Little in our program. We have over 200 kids currently waiting to be introduced to a mentor,” Morales says. “We all kind of wait for things in life, but our children are really counting down the days until they can be introduced to a mentor.
“Mentoring really works and we believe that mentoring is something every child should have regardless of socioeconomic background,” Morales adds. “I think all kids benefit from having mentors. But there is that wait – girls wait an average of 9 months; boys can take two years, if not more.”
At the BBBS Annual Fundraiser Gala, Morales wants to put the call out for more mentors.
“We especially need men,” she says. “We need mentors of all backgrounds in terms of gender, race, experience. We need mentors from all walks of life.”
The event will also specifically honor Porsha Davis as the BBBS Dane County Big of the Year. Davis is a former Little Sister who became a Big Sister herself after graduating from high school where she was matched with Little Sister Renajah.
“Porsha has a really awesome story. While she attended UW-Whitewater, she was matched with her Little Sister Renajah who just graduated from [Verona Area] High School this past year,” Morales says. “Porsha decided to pay it forward and she connected really well with Renajah.”
BBBS will also celebrate their 2019 Bigs of the Year for their commitment and dedication in helping their Littles reach their potential. Big Brother Todd Berge and Big Couple Malisa and Ajay Vyas will be honored at the event.
All the funds raised at the Annual Gala support BBBS programs that help create life-long meaningful mentoring relationships.
“This is our big fundraiser. Our goal is to raise $300,000. That’s been our goal for the last couple of years but it’s not been an easy goal to achieve,” Morales says. “But by meeting our goal, we will be able to meet our bigger goal which is to support 700 matches this year.”
And, hopefully, cut down on that waitlist.
“Yes, it will cut down the list but it will really cut down the time that it takes,” Morales says. “We know that mentoring is a necessity for our community and to our families that need additional support. So, we’d love to cut down that waitlist and cut down on the time waiting. We need to have a healthy pool of mentors and the resources to support the structure to make sure we can recruit and enroll more mentors.”
They will have 160 items available for their silent auction at the BBBS Annual Gala.
“We will have a champagne diamond raffle, too. When you buy a champagne flute you enter in to win a .9 karat diamond that you can go set as you wish,” Morales says. The diamond will be provided by Diny’s Jewelers.
A cocktail reception and silent auction will start at 5 p.m. tonight and the dinner and program will begin at 6 pm. Morales is excited about the annual event.
“Every year, I really love this annual Gala because I get to see all of the Bigs and Littles there. Out of the organizations in our community, this is the one where we bring the best talent together in terms of adults and youth,” she says. “We bring people from different perspectives together. So, I love seeing our Littles in the room all dressed up and just being part of an event that is really cool and knowing that they are central to our mission. It’s just amazing to see all of the relationships in one room. It really highlights the good work of Big Brothers Big Sisters.”
