Big Brothers Big Sisters Day in Oxford

Thursday, 18 September 2025 at 06:43

The Big Brothers Big Sisters flag will be raised in three locations in Oxford County today.

OXFORD COUNTY - It's Big Brothers Big Sisters Day in Oxford County and beyond.

The local agency offers mentorship programs for youth in our community whether it's the traditional one-on-one match, an in-school mentorship, or a group program.

Nicole Killaire, the fund development manager for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Oxford County, explains the significance of Big Brothers Big Sisters Day.

"Big Brothers Big Sisters Day is all about celebrating the successes, the accomplishments that we see with young people through our programs at Big Brothers Big Sisters, and the amazing people that make this happen with our volunteers, our families, and the community that supports our programming. It's all about celebrating the successes that we see through our organization and all of the young people we have been able to support."

The Big Brothers Big Sisters flag will be raised at the Oxford County Administration building at 10:00 a.m. today, followed by Woodstock's Museum Square at 10:30 a.m., and the Oxford-Broadway Parkette in Tillsonburg at 1:00 p.m.

September is also Big Brothers Big Sisters Month and Executive Director Kristen Ralph says the local agency is in the midst of its Spark Campaign.

"Big Brothers Big Sisters Month is a celebration of the sparks that mentoring creates in young lives. Through The Spark Campaign, we’re inviting our community to help ignite those sparks, because every child deserves the chance to feel seen, supported, and inspired to reach their full potential."

Volunteer Recruitment and Engagement Coordinator Erica Hughes says the local agency is in need of more mentors.

"There's approximately 130 young people on the waitlist right now in Oxford County. That's across the whole county, but if we were to think about regions specifically Ingersoll has around 40 young people, Woodstock has upwards of about 70ish and the rest are spread out throughout the communities."

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Oxford County hosts Bigs 101 sessions on the last Tuesday of each month, for people who are thinking about becoming youth mentors. It's a free one-day program that tells you all you need to know before submitting an application to become a mentor.

The Spark campaign also looks to spark potential through donations from the community. You can donate online here, or you can purchase a ticket for the 50/50 raffle online here. The winner will be announced on October 1st.