By Francesca Mari
On Monday, March 30, the senior public relations campaigns class hosted a guitar hero challenge to benefit the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island. Big Brothers Big Sisters is a non-profit organization dedicated to mentoring children on children at the Netherlands Cafe. The Guitar Hero Challenge was intended to create awareness surrounding the needs for mentors.
After two hours of fierce competition, Eric Dickcash was crowned the winner and given a $25 gift card from American Express.
The event was fun and informative; competitors got the chance to speak with Jamie Hille, the public relations and marketing manager of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island, and learn about the organization’s mission and volunteering opportunities.
The event raised much-needed funds for Big Brothers Big Sisters and gave University students the opportunity to learn about the mentoring program on campus.
Many students at the event were very surprised to learn that the mentoring program was actually active and ongoing on campus. “You can gain over 30 hours of community service by spending as little as one afternoon per week with a child from a local elementary school,” Hille said during a conversation with one interested mentor.
The PR campaigns class has several other events planned in upcoming weeks. The “Walk for Kids’ Sake” is a 5K walk taking place on Saturday, April 25, from 9-10 a.m. at Zach’s Bay along the scenic Jones Beach boardwalk.
Big Brothers Big Sisters has been the premiere mentoring agency on Long Island since 1977 and has cultivated thousands of relationships for children in need of additional support and guidance. Results from an independent study showed that children who met regularly with their “Bigs” were less likely to skip school, were more confident about their schoolwork, had improved relationships with their parents and peers and were significantly less likely to engage in negative or destructive behavior.
Volunteer mentors are screened, trained and carefully matched with a child.