With the proceeds from one more evening of bowling still to come, Big Brothers Big Sisters' (BBBS) annual fundraiser, Bowl for Kids' Sake, will bring in over $20,000 this year.
"As of today, we are sitting at $17,000," said Amy Hogemann. "We still have one more bowling night on Wednesday, (February 15) plus any online donations can come in until then, too."
Hogemann is the caseworker for the Humboldt branch of BBBS, and runs the office together with executive director Stacey Poss.
"We found the number of bowlers was slightly down this year," Hogemann added, "but the teams that have been out there for us have been amazing. They are our supporters."
However, Poss understands that there is a lot of demand being made on people for many different charity events at this time of the year, and taking that into consideration, says she feels the organization has done well.
Poss admits that although it's a busy time, she really enjoys the week of bowling because it is nice to touch base with everyone and to see them having fun.
"This event is not only a fundraiser," she explained. "It helps us raise awareness and gives us the opportunity to talk to people personally about how they can help as far as any spare time they may have.
"What has really been good this year is having the corporate sponsorships," she added. "This year we've had companies that have never participated before come on board."
The executive director anticipates that when the final figures roll in, they will have raised close to $24,000.
"The money raised will help us in our recruitment efforts for children and mentors as well as taking our programs to more rural schools and communities," said Poss. "Our wonderful volunteers really do shine a ray of hope and understanding into children's lives. There are many children that can benefit from that one-to-one time an adult can offer."
Poss is also thankful for the bowling space the Ruthven brothers donate, as well as the incredible team of volunteers that were instrumental in coordinating this year's fundraiser.
"We appreciate everything everyone did this year, whether it was putting a team together, raising funds in the office, donating or putting a silent auction together, it all helps. " she said. "And as we reach out to the rural communities we hope to bring more new teams to the event."
