Cape Cod, April 29, 2019– Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cape Cod & the Islands (BBBSCCI) is making a real difference in the lives of more than 350 youth on the Cape and Martha’s Vineyard by creating and nurturing transformational one-to-one mentoring relationships. This year, Big Brother Bob Schulte is being honorably recognized as Massachusetts Big of the Year for his immense impact on his Little brother Sean, his family, and the agency since March of 2012.
Every year, Big Brothers Big Sisters affiliates across the nation submit one Big Brother and one Big Sister to be considered for their state’s title of Big of the Year. In order to win the title, the mentor needs to exhibit superlative influence over his/her Little throughout their match, and Bob has done so for the last seven years. However, Bob acknowledges that his relationship with Sean has been a “two-way street” and that Sean has taught Bob just as many life lessons.
Although Sean is the Little in the relationship, he too gives back to his community and develops his leadership skills through his participation in the U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps. and Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. Throughout their match, Bob and Sean honed in on their desire to do good and even contributed to Cape Cod’s Stuff-A-Bus holiday campaign. “Bob has been consistent since the beginning, and this has set the tone for a lifelong friendship. Beyond the normal outings that Bigs and Littles have, this connection is what binds the pair together,” said Amanda Peterkin, Match Support Coordinator at BBBSCI. “Bob has been a role model for Sean over the years through spending quality time together, teaching Sean basic life lessons and modeling positive behavior.”
As a cancer survivor, sibling to three and son of a widowed mother, Sean needed the influence of a male role model, but despite officially being Sean’s Big, Bob support all four children and quickly became known as the “Family Big.” “The impact that Bob has had on Sean, the Hanson family and our agency are all lifelong and will all live on beyond the ‘graduation’ of our program,” said JR Mell, Regional Director. “Bob will continue to be an example and a resource of how impactful our agency is and how being ‘Big’ to a ‘Little’ changes lives for all.”
The agency will formally honor Bob on June 10th at their 19th Annual Golf For Kids Tournament & Dinner at the Cummaquid Golf Club. Golf reservations, dinner tickets and more information can be found on the tournament website: https://www.bbbsmb.org/events/cape-golf-for-kids/
While Sean has been fortunate enough to experience the positive impact of having a Big Brother, we currently have many other kids just like him throughout the Cape and Martha’s Vineyard waiting to be matched with a Big like Bob. For more information, or to sign up, please visit CapeBigs.org.
About Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cape Cod & the Islands
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cape Cod & the Islands, a proud member of the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay family, is the only one-to-one youth mentoring organization serving over 350 youth on Cape Cod and the Islands. Our program is proven to produce several positive long-term and short-term youth development outcomes. Research shows that a match of just one year helps kids stay in school, avoid violent and risky behavior, and gain confidence. To learn more about Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cape Cod & the Islands, please visit www.CapeBigs.org.
