Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta Celebrates Graduating High School Seniors
sATLANTA — Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta recently held its annual Graduation Celebration to honor the 52 graduating high school senior Littles. The event, which took place at Georgia State University on July 13th, 2024, was a heartwarming occasion attended by over 125 guests, including 20 graduating Littles, alumni Bigs and Littles, family, and friends.
The day's festivities were kicked off by BBBSMA’s Chief External Relations Officer, Michele Pearce, who introduced the Masters of Ceremonies for the day, Big Brother Mike Milero, and Little Brother Jahmyr Jones. Mike and Jahmyr shared their inspiring journey together before Jahmyr proudly walked the stage with the Class of 2024.
The celebration continued with lunch, a special guitar performance by Little Brother Dino Martin, and a keynote address by Kwame Johnson, the President and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta. Two featured high school senior match speakers in attendance, Harmony & Jacqueline, and Leah & Carla, also shared their stories and plans for the future:
Harmony & Jacqueline — Harmony has been matched to Jacqueline in the Community Based program since August 2016. She graduated from Druid Hills High School and plans to attend Albany State University.
And Leah & Carla who have been matched since December 2014 in the Community Based program. Leah is graduating from Dutchtown High School and has plans to attend Alabama State University.
Next, guests were treated to another incredible special performance by hip-hop group, Urban Outreach Project.
Our seniors were then individually invited to cross the stage to receive their certificate and medal while their names were announced by Rashaun Reid, Director of Big Futures. Subsequently, an Alumni Ceremony and Recognition of Parents took place. The Ceremony was led by Mollie Singh and Aleigha Murphy, Alumni Big & Little Sisters. They shared insights on mentorship, paying it forward, and how their bond has grown post-Aleigha's graduation. The duo then asked the graduating Littles to stand for their parents to present them with medals. A special segment of the Alumni ceremony honored the Bigs of the graduates, where each Little pinned their Big as a symbol of gratitude for the time, effort, care, and commitment shown throughout their partnership.
Then, the BBBSMA Class of 2024 received $19,000 in scholarships! Presented by Kara Stimpson, our Chief Impact Officer, the 2024 scholarship recipients are as follows:
A $2,500 scholarship from The Atlanta Braves Foundation was awarded to Jahmyr Jones. Jahmyr plans to attend Morehouse College.
A $2,500 scholarship from Fiserv was awarded to Jaylend Bates. Jaylend plans to attend Tuskegee University.
A $2,500 scholarship from Whataburger was awarded to Chasity Dorsey. Chasity plans to attend Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University.
The $2,500 scholarship from the Benjamin “Ben” Rohrer Scholarship Fund at KPMG was awarded to Cynne Omubo. Cynne plans to attend Berea College.
After that, Kara presented 4 senior scholarships winners from Chamblee High School on behalf of the Beyond School Walls program at Cox Enterprises. Each year, Cox Enterprises generously awards eligible seniors a scholarship to help propel their futures.
This year, Cox awarded $4,000 in scholarships. Congratulations to this year’s recipients: Akai Essienumoh, Tamiyah Gould, Madeleine Petchokomani, and Kyra Wright.
Google also made the choice to make a BIG impact! Three seniors from Mays High School were selected on behalf of our Beyond School Walls program at Google. This year, Google awarded $5,000 in scholarships. Congratulations to this year’s recipients: Fatima Jabbi, Evelin Peraza, and Jaydan Price.
BBBSMA President & CEO, Kwame Johnson, then wrapped up the celebration by expressing how proud he is of our high school senior Littles, and how thankful he is to our Bigs, Families of Littles, and Partners.
Thank you to our:
Beyond School Walls partners: UPS, Cox, Google, Chick-fil-A, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, and Insight Global.
As well as our Big Futures partners: The Atlanta Braves Foundation, Bank of America, Porsche, Fiserv, Newell Brands, Nordstrom, State Farm, The Dalton Family Foundation, Delta Community Credit Union and Wellstar Health System.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta’s one-to-one mentoring programs work with volunteers, parents, and families to help create relationships that defend, inspire and empower the potential that lives within every kid.
