Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Indiana announces the new National President and Chief Executive Officer of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Pam Iorio, will be visiting Fort Wayne. The visit will be Tuesday, Sept. 30, at the Big Brothers Big Sisters Campus in Fort Wayne.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Indiana is a nonprofit organization that serves children in Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Huntington, Kosciusko, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben, Wells and Whitley counties in Indiana and Branch, Hillsdale and St. Joseph counties in Michigan.

The local office of Big Brothers Big Sisters of NEI is located at 1603 N. Detroit St., Warsaw.

The goal in this visit is to introduce Iorio to the Fort Wayne community and Fort Wayne’s long standing tradition of serving Big Brothers Big Sisters on a local and national level.

“We are so excited to roll out the purple carpet to welcome Pam Iorio to Fort Wayne. We look forward to introducing Pam to everything the Fort Wayne Community and surrounding areas have to offer,” says Josette Rider, president and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Indiana.

“Our agency is consistently among the strongest in the country serving more children in Northeast Indiana than Indianapolis, Chicago, or Cincinnati. Pam’s visit is a wonderful opportunity to build upon our current programming successes with the goal of serving even more children locally and nationally.”

Iorio is the former two-term mayor of Tampa, Fla., (2003-2011).  Author of “Straightforward: Ways to Live and Lead,” Iroio delivers a message about straightforward leadership and the importance of leading oneself well – in order to effectively lead others. While in Fort Wayne, Iorio will be meeting with local Big Brothers Big Sisters staff, donors and corporate partners.

The Fort Wayne Community has a long standing tradition of supporting Big Brothers Big Sisters on both a local and national level. Don Wolf, Fort Wayne native and former president and CEO of locally based, Do It Best Corp., founded Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Indiana in 1972. Wolf also served on the National Board of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America for nearly 20 years, including serving as National President and CEO from 1974-1980.

In 2013, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Indiana and Southcentral Michigan supported more than 2,000 matches in its 13-county coverage territory. It won Agency of the Year, Board of the Year and had the Big Sister of the Year – all on a national level.

This was the third time winning Agency of the Year (2006, 2009 and 2012) and the first time receiving recognition as the National Board of the Year.

Children in Big Brothers Big Sisters’ programs are: 52 percent less likely to drop out or skip school, 42 percent more likely to get a college degree, 46 percent less likely to use illegal drugs and 33 percent less likely to hit someone.

Big Brothers Big Sisters’ mission is to help children reach their potential through professionally supported one-to-one mentoring relationships with measurable impact.

For more information, to volunteer, donate or to learn how to help support their mission, contact Christina Taggart, match activities coordinator at (260) 456-1600, [email protected] or visit their website at www.bbbsnei.org.