Mentoring programs going strong across Lanark County
REGIONAL — More than 400 bowlers laced up across Lanark County last week, helping raise more than $85,000 for Big Brothers Big Sisters mentoring programs.
The annual Tim Hortons Bowl for Kids’ Sake fundraiser took place Feb. 26 and 28 at three bowling centres: Gratton Lanes in Smiths Falls, Chasin’ Turkeys in Carleton Place and Spare Room Bowling Lanes in Perth.
Jennifer Miller, executive director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Lanark County, shared with Hometown News the total marks one of the strongest years the event has seen since the pandemic.
“It’s a very strong year. We’re really, really grateful,” Miller said.
Bowl for Kids’ Sake has been running locally for 46 years and has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to support mentoring programs for children and youth across the region.
Corporate sponsors covered the cost of running the event, allowing all pledges raised by bowlers to go directly toward local programming.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Lanark County offers traditional one-to-one mentoring matches, in school mentoring and group programs such as Go Girls and Game On, which focus on healthy lifestyles, confidence and positive decision making. These are school-based programs.
The agency also operates the Smiths Falls Youth Centre, which opened in 2017 and now draws between 20 and 40 young people each night.
“We’re putting on a full meal every time we’re open,” Miller said. That’s three nights a week.
Across all of its programs, the agency served 680 children and youth in Lanark County in 2025, the highest participation level since the pandemic.
About half of the young people served through the agency are in Smiths Falls, where the organization’s staff and youth centre are based.
Miller said community support continues to play a major role in the agency’s success.
“We’re fortunate that people know we make an impact,” she said. “They believe in the work we do and they see us helping local children and youth in schools and in the community.”
Despite strong fundraising results, Miller said volunteers remain in short supply. Many longtime volunteers stepped away during the pandemic and have not returned.
“We draw quite a bit from early retirees,” she said. “We just haven’t seen them come back since COVID in the same way that we need them.”
Miller said mentoring can be one of the most rewarding ways to give back.
“What you get out of it as an adult giving back is so fulfilling,” she said. “There’s really no way to describe it until you try it. There’s something that fills your soul when you see the difference you can make.”
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