Big Brothers Big Sisters Names "Bigs of the Year" for Tarrant County

Keller and Fort Worth Residents Recognized as Tarrant County's Best of the Best. Candy Conway and Tennessee Walker honored for making a significant positive impact on the lives of local at-risk children.

Big Brothers Big Sisters is pleased to announce that Candy Conway and Tennessee Walker have been named Big Sister of the Year and Big Brother of the Year, respectively. The "Big of the Year" award recognizes outstanding volunteers who provide exceptional and life-changing impact to the children they mentor in their geographic region.

"The relationship Candy and Tennessee have with their 'Littles' is the epitome of what we hope to achieve for all of our matches," says Robert Roby, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters. "Their commitment to our program is truly inspiring. We are honored to have them on our team."

Candy Conway was selected as Tarrant County's Big Sister of the Year because of the tremendous long-term impact she has made in her little sister's life. In the eight years Candy and Charity have been matched, she has transformed from a shy loner who struggled to read, into an award-winning poet and writer.

Tennesse Walker was chosen as Tarrant County's Big Brother of the Year not only for the difference he has made in his little brother's life, but also for his desire to educate and recruit others in his professional industry. In the two-and-a-half years Tennessee has been a Big Brother, he has worked tirelessly to recruit new Bigs and cultivate donors throughout Tarrant County's legal community.

Each year, regional winners from across the 60-county service areas are automatically nominated for Lone Star awards. The Lone Star service area includes all of North Texas, West Central Texas and the greater Houston area. Winners of that selection process move on to statewide Big Brothers Big Sisters award recognition held in the Spring. Texas winners will be eligible for national awards selected by Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.

About Big Brothers Big Sisters
Big Brothers Big Sisters, the nation's largest donor and volunteer supported mentoring organization, holds itself accountable for children in its program to achieve measurable outcomes, such as educational success; avoidance of risky behaviors; and higher aspirations, greater confidence and better relationships. Partnering with parents/guardians, schools, corporations and others in the community, Big Brothers Big Sisters carefully pairs children ("Littles") with screened volunteer mentors ("Bigs") and monitors and supports these one-to-one mentoring matches throughout their course. The first-ever Big Brothers Big Sisters Youth Outcomes Summary, released in 2012, substantiates that its mentoring programs have proven, positive academic, socio-emotional and behavioral outcomes for youth, areas linked to high school graduation, avoidance of juvenile delinquency and college or job readiness.

Big Brothers Big Sisters provides children facing adversity, often those of single or low-income households or families where a parent is incarcerated or serving in the military, with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one mentoring relationships that change their lives for the better, forever. This mission has been the cornerstone of the organization's 85-year history. Big Brothers Big Sisters Lone Star serves over 30,000 children, volunteers and families through 20 offices and over 100 counties in Texas. Learn how you can positively impact a child's life - donate or volunteer at bbbstx.org.