Your Story. Our Community.

People understand that what we offer is something different for families and kids…It’s been amazing to see how many people our programs touch. Last year we served 1,165 kids in one-to-one mentoring situations, and our waitlist is well over 1,000 kids…We’ve been able to really move the needle on how many kids we can help annually thanks to our volunteers, funding and programming. Reaching new kids is only meaningful if we can maintain a high-quality program.
—Darcey, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Indiana

This is my hometown! My favorite part of the city is all of the events. Every summer is a joy!
—Janai, participant of Indy Ultimate

We need people who can go out to their peers and teach them about what’s going on in their communities. Crossing boundaries, teaching people new things, and possibly saving a life – that’s rewarding to me.
—Sarah, youth ambassador at Brothers United

I’ve been volunteering here for 20 years, because you can see a child getting help that needs help. It’s as simple as that. We have an impact on the kids, their families, our city, the crime rate and educational impact of our community. I have big visions for what I think can happen in the future. I want every kids who wants and needs a mentor to be able to have one, because we know the difference that it makes in a child’s life.
—Larry, board member for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Indiana

Safe Place is a national program that’s run in Marion and Hamilton county by us at Stopover. It’s a program that’s denoted with yellow and black Safe Place signs on businesses and organizations that show that a child could come there for safety if they need help. It started in 1983 in Louisville, Kentucky. Since then it has spread to 37 states right now. It’s something that’s available for kids whenever they need help. Whatever reason they might need to trust an adult, they can go to where they see a Safe Place sign. In Indianapolis, we have all the libraries, all the fire stations, every IndyGo bus, Boys and Girls Clubs, YMCA’s, every Indy parks community center – over 450 sites marked with the signs, ready to help kids.
—Jonathon, Safe Place coordinator at Stopover

The obvious hook for me was the bikes. I’ve been a cyclist since I was a kid. I started riding and never stopped. But it’s grown to be a lot more than that. You get to work with kids one-on-one. You get to teach them about bikes. You get to teach them about being healthy and about teamwork and hard work and all those things.
—Nathan, communications director at Nine13 Sports