Think Big Celebrates Volunteers at Annual Appreciation Event

More than 200 supporters came together for the Think Big for Kids Appreciation Event held on January 29^th at the beautiful Tampa River Center. Sponsored by Strategic Partner, ReliaQuest, the annual event was a celebration of the volunteers, mentors, donors, board members and partners who make Think Big’s mission possible.

Think Big’s Executive Director, Amy Alley, along with Founder & Chair, Tony DiBenedetto, shared the latest news and impact from Tampa Bay and throughout the organization’s five additional regions. Other event highlights:

• 2024 Volunteers and Partner of the Year were presented by Amy Alley and Cindi Jacobsen, Think Big’s Director of Programs.
• Think Big’s regional leaders were in attendance following their annual retreat.
• A live auction for a 5-night luxury vacation with proceeds from the winning bid benefiting Think Big! Thanks to Paul and Debby Estes for their generous donation.

Click here to see all event photos.

2024 Volunteers of the Year

Allie Spurrier-Battaglia

Allie has been a mentor to Ja’Niyah since 2020. Ja’Niyah is currently attending North Carolina A&T and is working on her degree in psychology. Besides being a mentor, Allie is also a career showcase host and workshop volunteer at Dr. Carter G. Woodson PK-8 School through Think Big’s partnership with After-School All-Stars. Allie also sits on the board for the True North Society and always asks how she can do more to support Think Big’s mission.

Gaines Hayes

Gaines was Think Big’s Tampa Connection Non-Profit Team lead and has continued to give back long after the project was complete, unafraid to pick up the phone and make connections for Think Big in the community. Gaines is a mentor to Matthew and has been helping him transition through his first year of college at the University of South Florida. He is also a member of Think Big’s Volunteer Committee and always happy to help, whatever the need.

Mike Herdegen  

Check out Mike’s Bio here.

Mike was one of Think Big’s earliest supporters and continues to serve as the organization’s volunteer systems and technology lead. Mike played an integral part in developing Think Big’s CRM systems as well as the processes for tracking student results and program impact. In addition to meeting weekly with Think Big’s internal team, Mike always has time for questions, troubleshooting, and getting to the root of a problem to find the solution.

Jennifer Sparano

Jennifer supports the Dover Boys & Girls Club as Think Big’s career showcase and workshop volunteer in addition to providing process improvement with Career Exploration programming. Through her role at Hillsborough County Public Schools, Jennifer connected Think Big to additional resources that has enabled the organization to serve more high school students. Jennifer is a great supporter of Think Big’s mission and is always looking for ways to help make a greater impact.

2024 Partner of the Year

Accenture

Think Big is excited to recognize Accenture as the organization’s first Partner of the Year. Accenture Managing Director Pete Tapley accepted the award on behalf of the company’s Tampa Bay team. Accenture has been a Think Big partner for five years in the Tampa Bay region. Six Think Big students have participated in the company’s internship program, including repeat intern, Jose, who is hoping to work at Accenture when he graduates college in 2028. Accenture also hosts career interactive showcases, where students learn about consulting careers.  Accenture team members continuously work to champion Think Big internally and have been successful in making introductions that led to mentor-mentee matches. Accenture will host more Think Big students during the summer of 2025 through its Learning to Lead internship program.