Bigs and Littles: It's not only about the kids

TRURO, N.S. — Big Brothers Big Sisters and its partnerships with others are vital to the community.
We are proud to support local families to ensure our local young people have the mentors they need to reach their potential. The impact this has on our local families simply wouldn’t be the same without our partnering businesses and the support of our communities. 
“We continue to be amazed at the amount of people in Colchester that put up their hand and want to help local families, especially around the holidays,” said Nick Sharpe, executive director. 
An example and a representation of how this region values helping others is with Big Brothers Big Sisters new neighbours, the Red Woof Inn Doggy Daycare. Marcel, its owner, came to the staff at Big Brothers Big Sisters with an offer to give Red Woof Inn’s support to children and their families this holiday season that may be experiencing some financial struggles. 
The Red Woof Inn family will be bringing smiles to the faces of many children and their families this Christmas. Marcel, his wife Reta and the clients at Red Woof Inn will help Santa this year with a few stops here in Colchester County. 
“If we can help people in our community in a meaningful way, and more importantly, in a way that we can engage our clientele then we definitely want to be involved,” said Marcel. 
Marcel and Reta Marcotte are longtime residents of North River. They have made this quaint community their home now for the last 30 years. This community-grown partnership started back in June when Big Brothers Big Sisters was hosting a fundraiser at Fundy Scoops to support Angie Parker in her battle with ALS. Angie has two children in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. Reta and Marcel didn’t hesitate to get involved, as this cause is very close to their heart. 
The initiative opened the door for a larger partnership where Red Wolf Inn came on board to co-sponsor the Yappy Hour night at Fundy Scoops Dairy Bar, along with Classic Rentals, by donating dog treats for the “Give a dog a Cone” treat. They also purchased an outdoor dog shelter for dog owners stopping by for ice cream. 
“We saw Yappy Hour as a great opportunity to showcase our line of treats. The dog shelter was just a natural next step,” said Marcel. 
Health and quality of life for local families is at the core of both these organizations, dogs included. This makes the partnership between Red Woof Inn and Big Brothers Big Sisters a great fit. 
“To the generous partners, our volunteers who give so much of their time to empower young people, our fundraising partners and Big Bucks vendors who have allowed us to grow into the organization we are today, we say thank you and happy holidays,” said Sharpe.