text: Friday, Dec. 06, 2024| Today's Paper | 72.05°
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  After more than 40 years serving children on Oahu and Maui, and five on Kauai, Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) has come to the Big Island.
  The nationwide mentoring program for youth is active in more than 400 communities.
  Coordinators have begun taking applications for mentors and enrolling children in the program in Hilo and Puna. Later this year, the organization plans to expand to other isle locales.
  The one-on-one “community based” matches between a “big” and a “little” typically run for a couple of years, though “bigs” are asked to commit for only one year.
  The “bigs” are expected to meet with their “littles” two to four times a month for a few hours each, during which times they might go hiking, biking, fishing, swimming, to the public library or just talk story,” said Big Island spokesman Tom Goltz.
  BBBS also operates a school-based program under which elementary school children are matched with adults or with high school students as mentors at lunchtime or after school.
  For further information about the program, to apply to become a Big Brother or Big Sister, or to enroll a child, please contact Goltz at email@example.com or at 990-5045 in Hilo.