120 young people across Westchester and Putnam waiting to be matched
The annual benefit features a live and silent auction, an evening of entertainment and the recognition of a four-year Westchester match, with proceeds funding mentors for local young people
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Westchester & Putnam will host its annual Dream Big Gala next Friday, October 23 at Westchester Country Club in Rye, with proceeds supporting one-to-one mentoring for young people across both counties.
Doors open at 6 p.m. with a cocktail reception and silent auction, followed by dinner, a live auction and an evening of entertainment. Benefit auctioneer Jamie McDonald returns as the evening’s host. Magic Mike Jacobson, a mentalist seen on “America’s Got Talent” and “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” performs for the first time. He is the first magician named to a Forbes 30 Under 30 and the youngest person ever admitted to Hollywood’s Magic Castle.
Roughly 50 lots will be available across the live and silent auctions. Among them: house seats to the Broadway production of “Other Desert Cities,” starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ed Harris, Allison Janney, Joe Keery and Lily Rabe; five house seats to “Aladdin,” with Emmy nominee Sherri Shepherd as the Genie; Coach’s Club seats at MetLife Stadium for a New York Giants game; a golf trip to Sea Island on the Georgia coast; a vacation in Tuscany; and VIP tickets to Sting at the Paramount in Brooklyn.
Additional lots include a round of golf at Winged Foot or Whippoorwill, a portrait session with photographer Ben Larabee, tickets to women’s soccer at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles, and signed Giants memorabilia including a football signed by Arvell Reese and a Cam Skattebo jersey.
“The Dream Big Gala has become one of those nights people really look forward to, and we’re excited to make this year’s celebration our best yet,” said Erin Mara Brooks, chair of the 2026 Dream Big Gala. “Between the setting at Westchester Country Club, the auction and everything we have planned, it’s going to be a fantastic evening. But what makes this event so special is knowing that the fun we have together translates into something much bigger. Every ticket purchased and every dollar raised helps Big Brothers Big Sisters create more life-changing relationships for children right here in our community.”
The organization will also recognize its 2026 Match of the Year: Big Brother Bob and Little Brother Rourke, who have been matched for four years. Last year, with Bob’s guidance, Rourke organized a gift drive so that other children in the program would have something to open at the holiday celebration.
Founded in 1958, the chapter has spent nearly seven decades matching adult volunteers with young people ages 7 to 17 in Westchester and Putnam, through both community-based and school-based programs. Each match begins with recruiting and screening a volunteer, training them, and pairing them deliberately with a child whose family has come to the organization. A staff member then provides ongoing support to help strengthen and sustain the relationship, which the chapter credits as a key reason its matches last and why each one requires continued investment.
There are currently 120 children in Westchester and Putnam waiting to be matched with a mentor. Nationally, roughly 30,000 children are on Big Brothers Big Sisters waiting lists.
“Every one of those 120 children was enrolled by a parent or guardian who decided their child deserved one more committed adult in their life,” said Valerie Brown, interim chief executive officer of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Westchester & Putnam. “What we do is not complicated. We find that adult, we train them, we make the match carefully, and then we stay with it for as long as it lasts. That last part is what makes the difference, and it is what this evening pays for.”
Individual tickets are $350. Big Impact tickets, at $600, cover a guest’s seat and sponsor a young person from the program to attend alongside them. Corporate and individual sponsorships range from $5,000 to $50,000 and are priced to the work rather than to logo placement — a $10,000 sponsorship funds eight local children matched with a mentor for a full year; $25,000 funds twelve.
Tickets and sponsorships are available at secure.qgiv.com/event/2026dreambiggala