{"id":5084384,"date":"2019-08-23T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-08-23T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ctlatinonews.com\/espns-hugo-bernal-making-a-big-impact-through-big-brothers-big-sisters\/"},"modified":"2019-08-23T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-08-23T04:00:00","slug":"espns-hugo-bernal-making-a-big-impact-through-big-brothers-big-sisters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/2019\/08\/23\/espns-hugo-bernal-making-a-big-impact-through-big-brothers-big-sisters\/","title":{"rendered":"ESPN&#039;s Hugo Bernal, Making A Big Impact Through Big Brothers Big Sisters"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>By&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/vickiadame\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Vicki Adame,<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/ctln.local\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CTLatinoNews.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Fishing, mud\nraces and in the near future horseback riding.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These are just some of the activities <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Hugo_ESPN\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hugo Bernal <\/a>and 11-year-old Jay have been doing since being paired through <a href=\"https:\/\/nbbbs.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nutmeg Big Brothers Big Sisters (NBBBS)<\/a> a year ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When Bernal, a multi-platform sports broadcaster for ESPN, first met with Jay, the 11-year-old told him he really wanted to go fishing. The two have been on numerous fishing trips. And when Bernal mentioned he had a drone, Jay said he wanted to fly it. And about a month ago the two took part in a mud run.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cLately, he\u2019s been saying he wants to go horseback riding. I have the place, it\u2019s just a matter of finding the time to go,\u201d Bernal said.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And every outing\nincludes getting something to eat. \u201cWe get\nhamburgers all the time,\u201d Bernal said.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bernal is one of\nabout 1,200 mentors who have been paired with a little brother or little sister\nthrough NBBBS. But the organization is in need of many more mentors. <\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Currently, there\nare more than 200 children on the NBBBS waitlist, and about 100 of those\nchildren are Latino, said Brian Kelly, director of marketing for NBBBS. <\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"NBBBS interview on NBC Connecticut\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/8HSHVTWHoKI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><figcaption>Big Sister Natalie with Little Sister Serenity<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A third of the mentors are Latino, but there is a need for more.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cA lot of Latino\nfamilies would like their child to have a Latino mentor,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In order to\nbecome a Big Brother or Big Sister, an applicant must be 18-years-old or older.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere\u2019s no special education or advanced degree required. Basically, you just have to like children and want to make their lives better,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NBBBS, which is\nbased in Hartford, serves 132 out of 169 municipalities in the state, Kelly\nsaid. And mentors are needed in all of these areas. <\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kids in rural\nareas tend to stay on the waitlist longer. And for children who are 14, 15 and\n16 it\u2019s even harder to find them a mentor, Kelly said.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Since its\nfounding in 1966, the organization has served more than 68,000 children in the state.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Children in the\nprogram range in age from 6 to 16. NBBBS works to pair the child with a mentor\nwho has similar interests.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe mentors end\nup saying they have more fun than the children,\u201d Kelly said. \u201cSometimes they\nend up doing things they have never done.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The organization\ndoesn\u2019t ask mentors to spend a lot of money, Kelly said.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe just want\nthem to spend time together \u2014 be someone who they (the child) can confide in,\nbe a sounding board,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The organization\ndoes provide tickets to sporting events or the movies, but it depends on what\nthey like to do, Kelly said.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bernal had\nwanted to become a Big Brother for a long time, but his work schedule didn\u2019t\nafford him the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But, in the past\nyear-and-a-half his schedule became more flexible and he felt it was a good\ntime to apply.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEvery year I\ntry to help out with donating money, but this is more about making a\ndifference,\u201d Bernal said.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While NBBBS asks\nfor a 1-year commitment, Bernal decided to continue his big brother\nrelationship with Jay.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019re still\ngoing, we see each other as much as we can,\u201d Bernal said.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He also\nencourages others to consider becoming a mentor.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFor people\nlooking to help out somehow, instead of donating money, this is so much more\nrewarding,\u201d Bernal said.<\/p>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For information\non how to become a Big Brother or Big Sister, go to: https:\/\/nbbbs.org\/volunteer\/ or call 860-525-5437, ext. 117.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By&nbsp;Vicki Adame,&nbsp;CTLatinoNews.com Fishing, mud races and in the near future horseback riding. These are just some of the activities Hugo [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","ghostkit_customizer_options":"","ghostkit_custom_css":"","ghostkit_custom_js_head":"","ghostkit_custom_js_foot":"","ghostkit_typography":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[1572],"ppma_author":[565],"class_list":["post-5084384","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-community","tag-hugo-bernalnutmeg-big-brothers-big-sisters"],"acf":[],"mb":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Jermaine Smith","author_link":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/author\/jay\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By&nbsp;Vicki Adame,&nbsp;CTLatinoNews.com Fishing, mud races and in the near future horseback riding. These are just some of the activities Hugo [&hellip;]","authors":[{"term_id":565,"user_id":0,"is_guest":1,"slug":"news-editor","display_name":"News Editor","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g","0":null,"1":"","2":"","3":"","4":"","5":"","6":"","7":"","8":""}],"mfb_rest_fields":["title","uagb_featured_image_src","uagb_author_info","uagb_comment_info","uagb_excerpt","authors"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5084384","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5084384"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5084384\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5084384"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5084384"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5084384"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=5084384"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}