We want to reintroduce you to our Big Brothers Big Sisters Executive Director Andrew Backes and share what he’s working on to improve the lives of children in our community.
Andrew grew up in Evansville, Indiana, and attended college at the University of
Southern Indiana. He joined the staff at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwestern
Indiana in 2020. Andrew describes himself as loyal, passionate, and competitive.
His favorite aspect of working for the organization is seeing people who have been important in his own life getting involved to improve the lives of deserving children and youth.
“I heard about one of our matches who took their Little to Krispy Kreme for the first
time,” says Andrew describing one of his favorite match memories. “As insignificant as
that sounds, it reminded me of my childhood and how after spending time with my Dad
we'd often grab a donut from Franklin Pastries. It doesn't take a lot of money or big
adventures to create meaningful memories. Something as simple as hanging out and
eating donuts can mean the world to a child.”
His favorite match activity has been the holiday party in December watching Bigs and
Littles share a meal, play games, and open presents from Santa. “There was a lot of
laughter and joy that night,” he says. Andrew says BBBS is important because every
child deserves to have a friend and someone they can count on. At Big Brothers Big
Sisters, we have data that proves the positive outcomes from these one-on-one
mentoring relationships.
Andrew says one of his biggest accomplishments since joining the team has been
growing the organization’s budget to the point where we could give long overdue raises
and bonuses to the team who selflessly devote themselves to the mission.
“I love this job and our mission. We have A LOT of work to do to meet the demand for mentoring in our community and I'm excited about meeting that challenge,” he says.
Please feel free to call 812-425-6076 or email Andrew if you have any questions. As
BBBS gets ready for another year of giving back, we sincerely thank you for your
support as we continue to defend our youth’s potential together.
If you or someone you know is interested in becoming a Big, visit mentoringkids.org
