Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bluegrass is gearing up for its biggest fundraiser of the year. The 2025 Big in the Bluegrass Gala will be Saturday, October 11 at the Longship Club at Kroger Field in Lexington. The organization aims to raise $150,000 through the event, which will celebrate mentoring matches, community partners and the program's impact on local youth.
"We're really excited to celebrate our matches, our community partners, and just be able to get out and tell people about what we do," said Jenn Goble, Community Engagement and Marketing Director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bluegrass.
The gala will feature various sponsors, ticket holders and what organizers describe as "some pretty exciting things that are coming up that are secret right now."
For one board member, Christina Hauser, the organization holds deep personal significance. As a former "little" who was matched with two big sisters around age 9 in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, she experienced firsthand how the program can transform a child's life.
"This organization, it changed my childhood," she said. "My both my big sisters, they taught me what self-confidence, true friendship is like. I carry those lessons with me to this day, and I hope to make a change in somebody else's life."
Now serving as both a big sister herself and a board member, she's matched with a little named Hazel.
"Living in that experience and seeing it from a little's perspective, you know, I can only hope to continue to make a positive change in somebody's life and being matched with Hazel now has been nothing shy of amazing," Hauser said.
Her journey from little to big to board member demonstrates the lasting impact of the mentoring program.
"I lived the life of a little. I lived the life of a big, and now, you know, being a board member is kind of the natural step when the opportunity presented itself," she said.
Tickets for the October 11 gala are still available through the organization's website at BBBS-bluegrass.org. Sponsorship opportunities remain open as well. For those unable to attend but still wanting to support the cause, the organization accepts donations through its website and is always seeking new volunteer mentors. All funds raised will directly support the organization's mentoring matches in the Bluegrass region.
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