Sam Lubeznik (center), Owner/Operator of the 6 McDonalds restaurant locations in LaPorte County presents a check for $650 to Steve Bernth, Youth Service Bureau Big Brothers Big Sisters Executive Director and Stephanie Fleshman, Big Brothers Big Sisters Program Director.
The funds were raised through a recent promotion conducted on March 18th. For every customer who tried one of McDonald’s new Clubhouse Sandwiches, $1.00 was donated to support the Big Brothers Big Sisters mentoring program in LaPorte County. YSB Executive Director Steve Bernth stated that, “We are very grateful that Sam and McDonald’s came up with this great idea to raise funds for the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. Not only did it give us a chance to raise some much needed dollars, but it also gave us an opportunity to promote the program. We could even end up with a few new volunteers as a result”.
“I am a big supporter of youth mentoring programs”, said Lubeznik. “I firmly believe that kids will find a mentor one way or another. We need to make sure that our kids find a positive role model that will help them grow and develop into responsible young adults, and that is exactly what mentoring programs like Big Brothers Big Sisters accomplish”, he added.
According to Bernth, the Youth Service Bureau Big Brothers Big Sisters currently has about 80 kids matched in LaPorte County right now, but more volunteers are needed. For information about becoming a mentor you can visit the YSB web page at www.youthservicebureau.com, email bbbs@csinet.net, or phone 219-362-9587.