Big Brothers Big Sisters of North Alabama on the verge of closing doors

HUNTSVILLE, Al.
Loren Traylor isn't going to sugarcoat it.
Things are bad for Big Brothers/Big Sisters of North Alabama, an organization that has changed kids' lives here since 1982 as the local affiliate of the national group founded in 1904 and rated by Philanthropedia the No. 1 national nonprofit serving at-risk youth.
"We are pretty close to closing the doors," said Traylor, a member of the North Alabama group's board. "The problem is the federal government cut funding to two of our programs, and we lost almost $150,000.
"The federal government let us know about losing the programs in July, and the funding stopped in September. That leaves us with barely enough to survive in the bank, and we have more than 300 children in three different communities - Madison, Limestone and Marshall."
Emmett Moore, CEO of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of North Alabama, said the annual operating budget is $382,000. The federal government budget cuts eliminated the Mentoring Children of Prisoners program nationally, which provided $147,600 to the local group.
"That represented over one third of our operating budget," Moore said. "In addition to eliminating the Mentoring Children of Prisoners program, the loss of that funding also impacts the number of children we are able to service in the Huntsville metropolitan area. Even though we will continue serving children in Marshall and Limestone counties, the budget cuts have forced us to close the physical offices and lay off employees in those locations."
To help offset the losses, Big Brothers/Big Sisters is holding fundraisers, including Bowl for Kids Nov. 13 at Plamor Lanes and a Mentors Gala at Lowe Mill in January. The Big 5K run this summer raised $20,000.
"We can no longer depend on Washington, D.C., to fund programs that provide services to our children here in North Alabama," Moore said. "We must look within our own community to support our children and families."
Traylor said it costs the organization $1,600  a year to mentor one child. Several corporate sponsors, such as Crestwood Medical Center, Adtran, W.W. Grainger and Avnet have been a huge help, and the group also gets around $60,000 yearly from the United Way, she said. "Sometimes it's just a matter of more coming in than going out," Traylor said. "We don't have debt. We just need to see more money coming in."
If the nonprofit group is forced to close, it will affect single parents like Tameka Alexander. Her 14-year-old son, Tahjyer Reed, an eighth-grader at Ed White Middle in Huntsville, fishes, camps, plays guitar and softball with his mentor, Daniel Brooks, once or twice a week. Her 17-year-old daughter, Brittney Reed, a senior at Columbia High School, goes shopping, out to eat and volunteers with her mentor, Amber Echols.
"It's important that my children get to go out and do things I personally can't do," said Alexander, who is a working mother. "It's a  wonderful program. My children have really blossomed."
Traylor said the mentors are encouraged to spend at least four hours a month with their kids, but most spend more than that.
"This group is probably one of the most instrumental groups in turning children's lives around," Traylor said. "It's not like we're trying to throw money at education. These kids often don't have a role model to emulate.
"Some of their parents are in prison or on drugs or welfare and struggling to survive."
For more on the organization, call 256-880-2123 or go to bbbsna.org.