Big Brothers Big Sisters' Mentoring Brothers in Action Ambassador VaShawn Mitchell to Donate a Portion of CD Sales to Upstate Agency

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May 01, 2013, 07:53 ET

GREENVILLE, S.C., May 1, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Six-time Stellar Award-winner and GRAMMY^®Award-nominated gospel recording artist VaShawn Mitchell is set to perform at Spartanburg, South Carolina's 35^th annual spring fling on Sunday, May 5. Mitchell will perform at 4:00 p.m. on the FBS MainStage near Denny's Plaza in downtown Spartanburg. Spartanburg Spring Fling is one of the Upstate's largest outdoor festivals. Thousands attend for a weekend filled with music, food, art, crafts and family friendly activities.

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Mitchell, who is an ambassador for Big Brothers Big Sisters' Mentoring Brothers in Action initiative, will donate a portion of the proceeds from the sale of his latest cd, "Created for This," to Big Brothers Big Sister of the Upstate. "Partnering with Big Brothers Big Sisters means a lot to me," says Mitchell. "Growing up I experienced the positive impact an adult mentor can have in the life of a young man."

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Upstate provides children facing adversity with strong and enduring professionally supported one-to-one relationships that change their lives for the better. Big Brothers Big Sisters 2013 Youth Outcomes Survey Report finds children enrolled in the organization's community-based program for at least a year progress in education, behavior and socio-emotional areas.

94 percent maintained or improved in their attitudes towards risky behaviors
85 percent maintained or improved in their educational expectations
83 percent maintained or improved in social acceptance

After his performance, Mitchell will hang out with Littles and their Bigs at Denny's restaurant. "We are so thankful VaShawn Mitchell is taking his time to meet one-to-one with Little Brothers and Little Sisters in our program," said Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Upstate Spartanburg County Director Charlene Cheeks. "His time and donation from his cd sales will help our 'Littles' succeed in school and in life."

NOTE: Press conferences will be held Monday May 6^th in Spartanburg and Greenville to present the donation to Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Upstate. The Spartanburg press conference will take place at 8:30 a.m. at Carver Junior High School located at 467 South Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29306. The Greenville press conference will take place at 10:30 a.m. at Lead Academy located at 29 Ridgeway Drive, Greenville, SC 29605.

About Big Brothers Big Sisters
Big Brothers Big Sisters, the nation's largest donor and volunteer supported mentoring network, 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. Big Brothers Big Sisters Youth Outcomes Survey Report reinforces the mentoring program's evidence base of 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 100-year history. With about 350 agencies across the country, Big Brothers Big Sisters serves nearly 630,000 children, volunteers and families. The organization is engaged in a nationwide search to reunite with alumni mentors, mentees, donors, and family, staff and board members. Learn more at BigBrothersBigSisters.org.

SOURCE Big Brothers Big Sisters of America