Big Brothers Big Sisters offers volunteer opportunities to make a difference in a Santa Fe child’s life. CWL major Brianna Neumann volunteers eight hours a month with her little brother.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northern New Mexico recently held its annual gala, a fundraising event for the organization, this year held at Buffalo Thunder Hotel, drawing volunteers from all over northern New Mexico—including Santa Fe University of Art and Design. “Preparing an event like this is always hard, but fun at the same time. It is really important for Big Brothers Big Sisters since it’s one of the sources from we get most of the funds of the year for the kids,” says Chris Leslie, one of the organizers of the event. A lot of different business and people from all over northern New Mexico donated items ranging from furniture and jewelry to hotel rooms and trips. SFUAD student Dani Vondrak, a regular volunteer for BBBS, helped gather volunteers for the event. “On the event day we showed up and ask some of the people who were in charge what we could do to help out, and a lot of them were telling us that we should be behind the booths of the art pieces or vacations that are bet on, to kind of exemplify what they were about and explain why they should bet on that,” says SFUAD student Victoria Ann Dailey. This event also was an opportunity for some of the students to put their skills to use. Charles Austin Ross, a film student, helped in the gala with his camera: “I got this project by a stroke of luck. I was talking to Ron Nunnely over at the [Driscoll Fitness Center] and a friend and member of the gym came in to talk to him. Chris Alexander of Big Brothers Big Sisters was that friend, a really nice guy. He asked my major and I told him Film and so he extended an offer my way.” After the auction,...