Big Heart Little Carts Helped To Raise Awarness Of Mentoring Program

Joshua Spray shared what impact his ‘Big’ had on his life and what it’s been for him to return the favor to a ‘Little’.

Oskaloosa, Iowa – The Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Mahaska County has been working for over a year to bring mentors and young people together, all in an effort to improve the lives of everyone involved.

On Sunday, September 23, Big Brothers and Big Sisters held an event at Debbie’s Celebration Barn that was a little bit fundraiser, and a lot bit ‘funraiser’.

Lunch was served from 11am – 1pm which was prepared by Mahaska County Cattlemen, Fareway, Hy-Vee, Jaarsma Bakery, and Anderson Erickson Dairy.

At 12:30, individuals who have served as ‘Bigs’ shared their stories as to why the experience helped shape them, and impacted their lives.

Debbie Guild shared her time as a ‘Big’ from 2002 to 2007 in Johnson County. Katie was Guild’s ‘Little’.

Guild called it the most valuable volunteer experience she has ever done. “Nothing compares to this experience.”

Guld was matched to Katie when she was 10-years-old. Katie lived in a home with an older brother, and a younger sister, and lived in a house with her father.

“I was kind of Katie’s female role-model, and so we did a lot of fun things,” remembers Guild of her time as a mentor.

Guild took the group down memory lane, sharing pictures and stories about the activities the pair did. “I think people are intimidated to do Big Brothers and Big Sisters because they think it costs a lot of money. We kind of did whatever was available, and Mahaska County is kind of similar to Johnson County, has a lot of freebies and things you can do.”

Guild said that Katie did an interview, saying that Guild “really helped to shape her value system.”

“I didn’t feel like I did much, but I think it really made a big impact,” said Guild. “From a time standpoint, I typically met up with her for a couple of hours on a Sunday afternoon.”

“I think if you have a couple of hours that you sit and watch Netflix or playing on your phone, and you like being around kids, I would really strongly encourage you to try this,” said Guild of her time as a mentor in Big Brothers and Big Sisters.

Katie is now 26 years-old and married, earned an associates degree, owns a home, and is a activities director for a retirement home.

Joshua Spray shared what impact his ‘Big’ had on his life. “I know that it was really important when I was growing up that my mom wanted to make sure that I had a really good role model, to make sure that I was growing up right and had somebody to talk to about guy stuff.”

Spray’s ‘Big’ Danny was in attendance on Sunday. Spray talked about all of thing things the pair did, which included, for example, hunting, fishing and camping. “Dan taught me about a lot of that stuff.”

Spray shared one of his favorite memories as a ‘Little’ at the ‘Show-Me State Games’ and how he was able to watch his ‘Big’ participate in Taekwondo and take part in the opening ceremony. “Dan got the really cool job of having to break a whole bunch of bricks.”

“I was really impressed, but I think I also realized I don’t want to make him [Dan] mad,” added Spray which drew a large amount of laughter. “It was definately an eye-opening experience for me.”

Another fond memory for Spray is having his ‘Big’ there when he participated in shooting sports. “Whenever Dan would come out and watched me shoot, I knew I needed to turn the key on, because I can’t let my Big Brother see me shoot like crap.”

“I think one of the things that makes me want to be a Big Brother is that I want to give back to the program that really helped me out,” said Spray. “It’s really important, I want to make sure that my Little Brother Grady, that he’s got the Big Brother that he needs.”

“We’ve only been matched for a couple of months now, but we’ve already had just a ton of fun,” added Spray.

Big Brothers and Big Sisters Director Robyn Duchow said that a total of 70 people participated in Big Hearts Little Carts, and they are now looking forward to their 2nd annual Beers and Bigs event scheduled for March 9, 2019. They are selling 100 raffle tickets at $100 each for a chance at a $2500 all inclusive package to Honey Creek Resort, which can be used anytime. Info and purchasing can be found at: event.bbbsmahaska.org