This National Mentoring Month, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County celebrated its 2023 School to Work Mentoring Partner of the Year as well as four Bigs of the Year for outstanding youth mentorship at its Big Thank You Breakfast presented by Publix Super Markets Charities. Honorees included School to Work Mentoring Partner of the Year MedPro Healthcare Staffing, Big Brother of the Year Detective Larry Scates, Big Sister of the Year Lisa Tumminello, High School Big Brother of the Year Logan Lamy, and High School Big Sister of the Year Liya Johny. MedPro Healthcare Staffing was named School to Work Mentoring Partner of the Year for its remarkable participation in the nonprofit’s School to Work program. Since launching School to Work last year, 36 team members have stepped up to be matched with juniors and seniors at Dillard High School in Sunrise.
Plus, the MedPro team developed a formal curriculum for School to Work, including mock interviews, resume workshops and more, as well as fun activities to better connect the MedPro Bigs to their Littles. The curriculum was so effective that it was adopted by other School to Work corporate participants and is now a model for the program. In addition, MedPro Healthcare’s CEO Liz Tonkin announced a $47,380 contribution from the Fort Lauderdale Turkey Trot at the breakfast. “We couldn’t have been more surprised, thrilled and completely grateful when MedPro announced the Turkey Trot contribution,” said Malena Mendez, President and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County. “MedPro brings to life the concept of corporate responsibility, and we’re so proud to be closely connected with them on all levels.” “All of our honorees – our School to Work Mentoring Partner of the Year and Bigs of the Year – exemplify what it means to selflessly go above and beyond to give back to the youth in our community. They truly shine a light on the lifechanging impact of mentoring,” added Mendez. The BIG Thank You Breakfast attracted more than 200 guests at Signature Grand. In addition to presenting sponsor Publix Super Markets Charities, sponsors included platinum sponsor UKG, silver sponsors JM Family Enterprises, Royal Caribbean, Memorial Healthcare System, bronze sponsor Bank of America, and Big Supporter Broward Health. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County is dedicated to creating and supporting mentoring relation-ships that ignite the power and promise of youth. Its larger vision is for all youth to achieve their full potential.