Big Brothers Big Sisters of Orange County & the Inland Empire (BBBS OC/IE) has announced the finalists for its 2026 Mentors of the Year selections in conjunction with National Mentoring Month. Exceptional individuals are nominated from the agency’s Community, High School Bigs and Workplace Mentoring programs, with winners to be announced in late January.
This special recognition celebrates the contributions of the organization’s Bigs and highlights the resiliency of its Littles, reinforcing the impact that mentorship can have on a young person, volunteer and community in igniting the power and promise of the next generation.
“Big Brothers Big Sisters is focused on ‘The Power of We’ – the extraordinary change that happens when communities unite around a shared purpose. An engaged community is the key to forming relationships between our Bigs and our Littles that can have a lifelong impact on both,” said BBBS OC/IE CEO Sloane Keane. “Our Mentors of the Year celebration recognizes the invaluable volunteers at the heart of our commitment to create and support mentoring relationships with meaning and long-term impact.”
For the Community program, Bigs in Big/Little matches are evaluated based on considerations such as how they have provided guidance, support and inspiration; helped mentees reach their goals and transition into college; and shaped the next generation of leaders.
In the Community category, the following Bigs & Littles of the Year matches have achieved finalist status:
ORANGE COUNTY
Female
- Courtney Burbank & Randi Holsapple
- Elsa Pena & Jasmine Estrada
- Jessica Lam & Yaitza Araujo
- Laura Whitcher & Yahaira Montes De Oca
- Thalia Pizano & Anabelle Salas
Male
- Howard Chen & Ethan Bravo
- Ian and Durrah Wagner & Emiliano Hernandez
- Colby Clark & Yerek Tapia
- Ethan Waterson & Marcos Flores
- JP Li & Brendan Nguyen
INLAND EMPIRE
Female
- Unique Edwards & Saidee Acevedo
- Miranda Rexhaj & Jazmin Rodriguez
- Mercedes Howard & Aniyah Thomas
Male
- Vincent Ledesma and Emma Daden & Isaac Thornton
- Julian Sanchez & Noah Saiz
- JP Iriart & Peyton Pettis
High School Mentors of the Year are selected with a focus on the mentor as a leader and the impact they have had on their mentee, campus and community. Overall, this program encompasses over 80 percent of the high schools in Orange County and the Inland Empire, with 6 recognized this year.
Workplace Mentors of the Year have made a significant and identifiable impact on their mentee’s college and career readiness. Companies receiving recognition this year include Ingram Micro, Google, Altura Credit Union, Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation.
Winners in each category will be recognized at special awards celebrations in the spring. In addition, final winners in the Community category will be nominated to participate in the national Big Brothers Big Sisters Bigs & Littles of the Year program
BBBS OC/IE currently has over 20,000 alumni, with 4,153 youth served and 104,126 volunteer hours logged in fiscal 2025. In terms of tangible results, 77% improve or maintain mental health, 89% improve academic performance, and 90% are less likely to engage in risky behaviors. 98% of participating youth graduate from high school on time (compared to the California average of 86%). A groundbreaking 30-year study shows Big Brothers Big Sisters of America Littles are 20% more likely to enroll in college and earn 15% more over their lifetimes.
There is currently a waiting list of more than 100 BBBS OC/IE Littles eager to be matched with a mentor (Big), and the organization is actively seeking volunteers. Learn more at https://www.ocbigs.org/volunteer and https://www.iebigs.org/volunteer.