Help us wish all of our Littles and families a fantastic start to a new school year! New beginnings often come with a mix of excitement and nerves, but every new chapter is a chance to learn, grow, and shine even brighter. We are believing for great things as Littles make new friends, learn new things, and take on new challenges! They have a whole team of people cheering them on, and BBBS staff members are so glad to be among those supporters!
BBBS Upstate Spotlights
Chris and Kadien became brothers officially in August 2023 as a school-based match, and bonded so quickly they decided to transition to the community-based program so they could spend time together off campus. In their first year matched, they have attended many BBBS events such as Greenville Drive baseball games, the Chef’s cooking classes, our annual Christmas party as well as attended our HALTER program and most recently Shipwreck Cove for our Back to School Splash!
Chris has been able to introduce his Little to different activities and is inspiring him to have more of a love of reading as they dive into comic books together as well as play “Dungeons and Dragons”, too. Currently the Big Brother is assisting Kadien right now to sign up to play football this fall. At the Back-to-School Splash, Kadien was a little unsure about doing the big water slide and Kadien insisted that he would go down if Chris would go first and be there to “catch him”. With his encouragement, Little Brother overcame his fear and sure enough his Big Brother was there cheering him on and told him “he will always be there to catch him”.
Happy first year anniversary and thank you Chris for all you do for Kadien and BBBS!
Events
Back to School Splash
Thank you to all who braved the cloudy skies July 23rd to attend our annual “Back-to-School-Splash” at Shipwreck Cove! The rain didn’t slow down the kids or their Bigs from getting in the water for fun and we were surrounded by smiles the entire night!
BBBS would like to give a shout out to so many supporters for donating time and resources to make it such a successful night:
Foster Victor Wealth Advisors donated book bags and bought the pizza for the event as well as had several volunteers come to assist in stuffing bookbags and giving out food. This was a huge blessing especially for our parents and children to start the school year off with a new bookbag and supplies and we enjoyed meeting some of their wonderful staff!
Bruster’s Real Ice Cream showed up with the ice cream truck to the surprise and enjoyment of many and served delicious treats all night. Milo’s Tea Company and Pepsi Co Beverage kept everyone hydrated and cool by donating different teas, lemonade, sodas and water. This was a huge hit yet again this year!
Lastly, we are incredibly grateful for the Shipwreck Cove team for welcoming us and shutting down the park for the entire night just for our BBBS family! This year they so generously donated the space and always accommodate us so well. We hope to do this again next year and it always takes our community to make it happen, so thank you to all involved, and to our Littles, we wish you a very safe, productive, and happy school year!
Click here to watch Fox Carolina’s piece on the event: https://www.foxcarolina.com/2024/07/24/local-group-makes-big-splash-with-back-to-school-event/
Kendra Scott Give Back
Sneak Peak to to The BIG Challenge
Big Brothers Big Sisters agencies across the country will compete in this bracket-style competition to determine who can raise the most funds from their supporters for mentoring relationships right in the communities they serve. Be ready to help BBBS Upstate win The BIG Challenge!
Become a Match Maker
MATCH MAKERS empower the potential of children across the Upstate through individual giving. By making a monthly gift, you will help introduce a waiting Little to their Big each and every month.
Due to inflation, it now costs $2,250 to support one match. Here’s the breakdown.
Make a one-time or recurring gift to help fund a match. See the one-time or monthly giving levels below along with their impacts and benefits.
A BIG THANK YOU TO OUR CURRENT MATCH MAKERS!
Happy Matchiversary!
Happy Matchiversary to our August matches! We’re so excited to hear about the adventures you go on this year.
Announcement for Families of Littles
Check out all the places providing free meals for kids in Spartanburg, Greenville, and Pickens County this summer.
Kidding Around Greenville – Free Summer Lunch Lists
Greenville County Schools Summer Food Service Program
