Mentorship group strikes gold with bowling fundraiser

Little Addysen Malkoch helps Program Director Aurora Hodgkins pull the winning 50/50 raffle ticket. Contributed / Big Brothers Big Sisters of Bath/Brunswick

Everyone loves a strike. Earlier this month, the clatter of falling pins at Yankee Lanes in Brunswick was cause for even more celebration than usual.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Bath/Brunswick raised more than $61,000 through its Bowl for Kids’ Sake fundraiser on April 9, according to Executive Director Lindsey McDonald.

The event, returning after the pandemic forced cancellations in 2020 and 2021, drew 71 teams of bowlers, McDonald said. While that’s less than the 100-plus teams that competed in past years, the organization still exceeded its $50,000 fundraising goal.

“We weren’t sure how it would look this year,” McDonald wrote in an email. “But we are so incredibly pleased with the number of teams that came out to bowl and how hard they are worked to fundraise.”

Big Brothers Big Sisters pairs children aged six through 14, or “Littles,” with adult mentors called “Bigs,” according to the organization’s website. Once matched, Bigs and Littles meet for quality time each month, building a bond over the course of months, years or longer.

Jen Crosby, a Big, and Grace Dauphinais, her Little, both of Topsham, only joined the organization this February, but that didn’t stop them from aiding the fundraising effort, Crosby said.

Big Jen Crosby (center-left) and Little Grace Dauphinais (center) with their team, “The Thirty-Somethings.”

“As soon as Grace and I got matched, I heard about this fundraiser and was like, ‘We have to do this,’” said Crosby, who works in marketing. “It was a no-brainer for me to jump at the opportunity to be a part of such a great event so that they can continue to have matches like Grace and I.”

Dauphinais, a ninth grader at Mt. Ararat High School, teamed with Crosby, Crosby’s sister and two of Crosby’s friends to form their squad, The Thirty-Somethings.

“In retrospect I should have called it “The Thirty-Somethings and Grace,” Crosby joked.

Through tools like social media, each member reached out to a wide network of friends, family, teachers and coworkers for help. By April 9, the group had raised just over $3,300 – the most of any team, according to Crosby.

“It was really easy because I think so many people have been impacted through the program,” Crosby said of the fundraising effort. “It’s so important.”

Most of the funds will go toward volunteer recruitment, vetting and training, according to McDonald. Though the organization has already served 87 local kids in 2022, a shortage of adult volunteers has left 17 Littles waiting for a match.

Even though she’s only been a Little for a few weeks, Dauphinais was just as happy to give back as she was to become a Thirty-Something.

“I’m grateful for the organization because it helps a lot of kids that need some support,” she said. “It’s a really good way to throw something good into their lives.”