Mentoring program increases its visibility

As a result, the surrounding Flowing Wells community is gaining a donation center and possibly a community gathering place as well, said Dave Greene, donation center director.

If all goes really well, he said, the charity might move its entire donation operation to the 5,000-square-foot building.

The outfit partners with Savers thrift store, which pays Big Brothers Big Sisters for the donations the organization takes in.

The money helps Big Brothers Big Sisters fund its mentoring program, which in addition to its standard practice of matching adults with children for mentoring also has on-site mentoring programs at four Flowing Wells Unified School District schools - Laguna, Centennial, Homer Davis and Walter Douglas elementary schools.

Setting up a donation center in the middle of the district seemed like a natural fit, Greene said.

Flowing Wells Superintendent Nic Clement said the district benefits from anything that can bring in more mentors.

The new donation center increases visibility for the Big Brothers Big Sisters program, which in turn increases the likelihood of recruiting new mentors, he said.

And increasing donations generates more money to recruit mentors, increasing the number of matches the program can make, he said.

"We've always had more demand for matches than we're able to create," Clement said.

Greene said he'd like to see the center become a central location for groups to meet and hold fundraisers, too.

He pictures high school students holding car washes there, he said.

The organization began "testing the waters" with the location in January, he said.

Big Brothers Big Sisters accepted donations there for a time and tracked the number of donors, finding it took in about 500 pounds of clothing a week with minimal signs and marketing.

Now the charity is on a six-month lease to see how it goes now that the building is an eye-catching bright green and has better signage.

At the same time, Greene said, he's being careful not to step on the toes of the nearby Ellie Towne Flowing Wells Community Center, 1660 W. Ruthrauff Road, which already provides many services for the community.

He has attended some neighborhood association meetings there to let area residents know what's going on, he said.

Community center coordinator Dianna Kelley didn't sound concerned when asked about the donation center. She hasn't heard any feedback about it from people who go to the community center, she said.

"At this point it hasn't really impacted us at all," she said. "I'm sure there's a need for them in the community, and I'm glad they're here, but at this point there's not much to tell."

Clement, however, was effusive.

"They're one of the oldest mentoring programs in the nation," he said. "They are experts at matching up, making the right connection between a kid and an adult. That just doesn't happen randomly or by chance. It takes work."

Contact reporter Shelley Shelton at sshelton@azstarnet.com or 807-8464.