A Letter From Our CEO & Board President

Dear Friends,
Over the past two years, we have been focusing on what we achieve as an agency which means real impact (measurable outcomes) on the children we serve. In order to do this, we had to improve upon our already high quality measures – the measures that lead to real impact. The quality measures are match length, match retention rate, and higher quality in our match support contacts with the Bigs, Littles, and parents of the Littles. Studies prove that an increase in these areas leads to longer and stronger matches which in turn lead to more impact and more positive outcomes on our children.

We have done that! Big Brothers Big Sisters of America recognized us, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwestern Wisconsin, as one of only 16 agencies (nearly 400 agencies in the United States) in 2008 to meet or exceed the quality measures they set forth. We are very proud of this. We want everyone to know we are committed to making a real impact on the children we serve, the children of our communities.

I can’t say thank you enough to our donors. You know the power of mentoring and the impact it has. It is life changing. These outcomes on our children do not happen without our supporters. Even in these challenging times, support for our programs has increased. The number of Matchmakers (donations of $1,000 – $4,999) continues to grow as do our Friendship Makers ($25,000 - $99,999). We continue to have strong support from the four United Way agencies in our service area; making up 27% of our contributions. The Fred C. and Katherine B. Andersen Foundation and the Otto Bremer Foundation continue their strong financial support for us. And 100% of our Board of Directors financially supports us. Without them and all of our supporters, we could not make the impact we are making. Again, thank you to all of our supporters.

To our Bigs, the people who give their time and share themselves with our Littles, thank you. You are the ones making a difference in the life of a child. Keep up the great work!

Quality mentoring is proven to work with real impact and outcomes. Now more than ever, the children of our community need us. They need caring people to look up to. They need someone to talk to and be a positive role model. This does not happen without support – financial and volunteers. Now more than ever we need your passion and commitment to make sure our kids have the mentors they need.

Remember our vision consists of successful mentoring relationships for all children who need and want them contributing to better schools, brighter futures and stronger communities for all. Big Brothers Big Sisters impacts everyone!
Sincerely,

Craig Monson, CEO
Vicki Hoehn, President of the Board of Directors

2008 Annual Report

2007 Annual Report