This season the Portland Timbers and Big Brothers Big Sisters Columbia Northwest partnered on a program known as “Sports Buddies” to form one-on-one mentorships with youth all over the Portland area. Recently, the Timbers have hosted two separate clinics at JELD-WEN Field to give the bigs and littles in the program an opportunity to play on a professional soccer field and learn skills from Timbers players Adin Brown and Peter Lowry.
“Big Brothers Big Sisters is a great organization and a partner of ours with the Timbers.” Lowry said. “So I’m happy to come out here and anytime you get to help out a great organization it’s definitely worth your time and I think we all had a good time today.”
In both clinics two separate groups from Big Brothers Big Sisters Columbia Northwest of over 30 bigs and littles were invited for a day at JELD-WEN Field that included instruction on several different fundamental skills of the game, an autographed ball from Brown and Lowry, and ending in an exciting game of bigs vs. littles with Lowry leading the littles team against their bigger and much older counterparts.
“We did a few different drills, some shooting, dribbling and a short-sided game. Mostly coming out here learning a few things and having a good time and enjoying the game of soccer,” Timbers goalkeeper Adin Brown said.
Big Brothers Big Sisters Columbia Northwest has been serving the communities of Oregon and Washington since 2002. During that time span they have launched several different programs to help children in need throughout the Portland area and have become the biggest Big Brothers Big Sisters agency on the West Coast and the eighth largest in the country.
Sports Buddies is a brand new program for the agency this year that brings children and adults together through their love of sports. Overall the program participates in more than 15 different kinds of sports and gives kids the opportunity to attend sporting events in the Portland area. The Timbers, along with the Portland Trail Blazers, Portland Winterhawks and Portland State Vikings are all charter partners of the Sports Buddies program.
A former big himself, Brown summed up the day, “When I was a big, going out and doing stuff like this with my little was so much fun. Being able to experience playing on a field like this and experience a great time with people from the organization, having a good time, learning some skills and making some memories. I think it’s great.”
To learn more about BBBS, sports buddies, or how to become a big yourself, please visit www.bbbsnorthwest.org.
