In 2018, a funding shortfall prompted Big Brothers Big Sisters of Alaska to stop making new matches in Haines, but a new state grant will help at least five youths aged 6 to 16 find local matches.
The grant comes from Gov. Michael Dunleavy’s Emergency Education Relief Fund. It will allow the agency to pilot a virtual enrollment process created to mitigate the impact of COVID-19. Local BBBS senior match support specialist Sarah Elliott said the grant could pave the way for additional matches if funding for a local office and director isn’t required.
“Right now, with COVID-19, everything is online,” Elliott said. “We’re doing interviews on Zoom and even having match meetings where the Big, Parent, and Little all meet virtually. There has been a big push at our agency to reach more at-risk youth, as many families in Alaska are struggling. I asked our leadership team and state board of directors why we can’t reach more youth in our remote communities and they agreed! As all the fundraising and development is now centralized, we’ve been told there’s a possibility that if this is successful, we could keep these remote areas active without an office or a local director.”
The interviews of participants will be conducted virtually with support from staff in Wasilla. Elliott will conduct the match meeting in-person in Haines and then support the new matches. Haines and Sitka were selected as the remote communities to serve, as Elliott and Kealoha Harmon are remote staff that live in those communities so they are able to assist and monitor the program.
Haines has eight matches currently and three new “Littles” have enrolled. Elliott said the organization is looking for local “Bigs” to match with youths. “I haven’t had any volunteers enroll yet,” Elliott said. “We have funding through June 30.” Elliott encourages couples to apply. She said, “Some of the most successful matches I support in the state are Big Couple matches, a married couple or significant others living together can apply together and share one male Little.”
Haines, Homer, Hoonah, Sitka and Ketchikan offices all shut down in 2018 due to funding shortages but existing matches were allowed to continue.
BBBS isn’t planning to reopen local offices at this time. “The governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund grant has come at a critical time for youth,” said Kealoha Harmon, Senior Customer Relations and Enrollment Specialist. “We know that more kids than ever are feeling disconnected from their friends, routines, and support systems. This grant allows us to connect more youth with caring adult mentors.”
Statewide, BBBS facilitates 201 matches, 98 of which are in Anchorage.
To enroll as a volunteer or a youth visit http://www.bbbsak.org