[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 41 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        H.Con.Res.41
                                        Agreed to April 28, 2005        

                       One Hundred Ninth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE FIRST SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
            the fourth day of January, two thousand and five


                          Concurrent Resolution

Whereas the year 2004 marked the 100th anniversary of the founding of 
  Big Brothers Big Sisters;

Whereas Congress chartered Big Brothers in 1958;

Whereas Ernest Coulter recognized the need for adult role models for 
  the youth he saw in court in New York City in 1904 and recruited 
  ``Big Brothers'' to serve as mentors, beginning the Big Brothers 
  movement;

Whereas Big Brothers Big Sisters is the oldest, largest youth mentoring 
  organization in the nation, serving over 220,000 children in 2004 and 
  approximately 2,000,000 since its founding 100 years ago;

Whereas Big Brothers Big Sisters has historically been supported 
  through the generosity of individuals who have believed in the 
  organization's commitment to matching at-risk children with caring, 
  volunteer mentors;

Whereas Big Brothers and Big Sisters have given countless hours and 
  forever changed the lives of America's children, contributing over 
  10,500,000 volunteer hours at an estimated value of $190,000,000 in 
  2004;

Whereas evidence-based research has shown that the Big Brothers Big 
  Sisters mentoring model improves a child's academic performance and 
  relationships with teachers, parents, and peers, decreases the 
  likelihood of youth violence and drug and alcohol use, and raises 
  self-confidence levels;

Whereas 454 local Big Brothers Big Sisters agencies are currently 
  contributing to the quality of life of at-risk youth in over 5,000 
  communities across the United States; and

Whereas the future of Big Brothers Big Sisters depends not only on its 
  past impact, but also on the future accomplishments of its Little 
  Brothers and Little Sisters and the continued commitment of its Big 
  Brothers and Big Sisters: Now, therefore, be it

    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),  
That Congress--
        (1) recognizes the second century of Big Brothers Big Sisters, 
    supports the mission and goals of the organization, and commends 
    Big Brothers Big Sisters for its commitment to helping children in 
    need reach their potential through professionally supported one to 
    one mentoring relationships with measurable results;
        (2) asks all Americans to join in marking the beginning of Big 
    Brothers Big Sisters' second century and support the organization's 
    next 100 years of service on behalf of America's children; and
        (3) encourages Big Brothers Big Sisters to continue to strive 
    towards serving 1,000,000 children annually.
  Attest:

                                 Clerk of the House of Representatives.

  Attest:

                                               Secretary of the Senate.