Agency Details:

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sioux Empire transforms communities, through quality mentors and professional services, which assist youth and young parents in achieving the highest potential, as they grow to become confident, competent and caring individuals.

Big Brothers Big Sisters
The purpose of the Big Brothers Big Sisters is to provide youth who are at-risk for low achievement socially, emotionally and economically with a mentor who is able to provide support and guidance and friendship, thereby helping the youth to become confident and caring individuals. The goals of the program are to increase youth’s self-confidence, social competence and caring attitude.

Mentor Mom
The Mentor Mom program offers support, guidance and friendship to young mothers who are navigating their way through the parental experience. This happens by matching them with a more experienced mother. The goals of the program are to: 1) help young mom’s access health, financial and educational assistance; 2) to increase young mom’s knowledge of living and parenting skills; 3) to encourage young mom’s to stay in and finish high school or get their GED; 4) to improve the young mom’s sense of self-worth/identity; 5) to provide friendship and support; 6) to encourage appropriate family planning.

Native American Scholars
The goal of Native American Scholars is to connect caring, consistent adults with Native American students, giving them the courage and confidence necessary to graduate high school and develop positive relationships with caring adults. Upon graduation, the goal is to help the students become employed or enrolled in post-secondary education.

Amachi
Amachi is a faith-based program where by youth who have an incarcerated parent are matched with a mentor. Mentors are recruited through churches in the community.

Description:
Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sioux Empire offers Four programs: Community-based Mentoring, and Mentor Mom, Native American Scholars and Amachi. Each area provides the opportunity to spend one-to-one time with a young person to provide a positive friend and role model. Big Brothers Big Sisters also has a satellite office in Watertown, providing community-based mentoring and a Mentor Mom progam.

History:
In the early 1900s, Irving Westheimer, a Cincinnati businessman, and Colonel Ernest Coulter of New York, almost simultaneously became concerned about the welfare of boys from single-parent homes. The idea of Big Brothers originated. Mrs. Cernelius Vanderbilt of New York City started the Big Sister movement
Big Brothers Big Sisters began in Sioux Falls in 1994 and is currently located in the Non-Profit Center building. Until, 2004, BBBS was a sponsored organization of the Helpline Center, but in 2004 became its own non-profit organization.

Contact people:

Jolene Groen, Executive Director, (605) 334-1632, (email) Melissa Jungemann, Mentor Mom Case Specialist, (605) 334-1632, (email)

Address:

1000 N. West Ave Suite 300 Sioux Falls, SD 57104 (See a map)

Directions:

Big Brothers Big Sisters is located in Suite 300 on the northeast corner of Madison St. and West Ave. in the Non-Profit Center.

Miscellaneous Information

Does this agency accept court-ordered community service?
	No
Does this agency accept youth volunteers?
	Yes
What is the minimum age to volunteer?
	16
What is the standard minimum age requirement for youth volunteers?
	16
Does this agency accept corporate group volunteers?
	Yes
Do you have volunteer opportunities for families?
	Yes
Does your agency accept youth groups that are supervised by adults?
	Yes