FDL County And State Of Wisconsin Big Of The Year

Sean Michels is a mentor for Big Brothers BBBS and was recently awarded ‘Big of the Year’ for FDL County.  Soon after, he was submitted as FDL’s choice for ‘Big of the Year’ for the State of Wisconsin and was awarded that as well.  Sean is a full-time student at UW-Oshkosh and works at the Family Resource Center.

A part of the BBBS family, Sean and his ‘little’ Miles have been matched through BBBS since 2012.  “The great thing about being matched with someone like Miles (Miles has Asperger’s) is that I get to see the improvement instantaneously, said Sean.  “With every new thing he tries we are making a big step. The smile on his face is amazing and I love seeing him tell his mom what we did with so much excitement!” 

Their match has been a consistent model to the standard that BBBS sets for all current and future matches.  This match was nominated for a variety of reasons including: uniqueness of their match, quality of time spent together, growth of their match and the asset they have been to the BBBS program. 

“It is amazing to watch what the dedication from a Big Brother can do for a child,” said Jennifer Smith, Senior Match Support Specialist of BBBS.  “There was concern when Mile’s first began the BBBS program.  His mom felt that due to his Asperger’s, a program like BBBS would have been beneficial, but a little scary and overwhelming.  Sean, through his likeable personality, put Miles at ease right away and began to build a lifelong friendship.”

“Sean is a great asset to BBBS as both an active participant and as a promoter of our organization as a whole,” Said Tammy Young, Executive Director of BBBS.  “He is able to portray and verbalize BBBS’ mission at a moment’s notice and displays the power behind being a mentor in FDL.  Sean is always available and ready for any engagement or opportunity to speak on behalf of BBBS and his match. He is a fantastic advocate for our organization!”

The best part of this match is that it is really just getting started.  Sean and Miles have years of new activities to do together as well as goals to set and complete. Sean truly makes a difference in the life of a child! BBBS is very proud to announce him as their ‘Big of the Year’ for both Fond du Lac and for the State of Wisconsin!