PHOTOS | See Who Showed Up and Raised $630,000 at the Bay Area’s Biggest Night for Youth Mentorship

Event: Big Brothers & Big Sisters Annual Gala 2026
Date: March 20, 2026
Location: Julia Morgan Ballroom
Photos: Andrew Caulfield and Jessica Monroy for Drew Altizer Photography

On Friday, March 20, 2026, nearly 300 guests came together at the Julia Morgan Ballroom to support our program and cheer on the BIG futures of Bay Area youth. Attendees included members of our dedicated Board, including Board Chair Lisa Pearson, Vice Chair Gwen Tillman, Campaign Chair Martha E. Conte, and 22 other board members. For the first time ever, the night featured a youth emcee, Jahvion, who was a Super Bowl LX youth reporter and continued his star momentum at The BIG Gala. Local news favorites Dan Ashley and Ama Daetz provided a “live mentoring” moment on stage, mentoring him throughout the evening as co-emcees.

Guests also heard from Galen Maness, Big Brother and Board Member, who shared about how his relationship with Max has inspired him to find more volunteer mentors in the local community. The audience also watched an exciting recap of Little Reporters interviewing players like Bryce Young, Fred Warner, and Mac Jones during Super Bowl LX as well as a video message from youth on our waitlist. We recognized this year’s Honored Matches with awards and heard from Littles Courtney and Sterling directly about how their relationships with Bigs Gina and Matt have given them confidence and strength to go through life’s challenges. The evening was produced by the incredible Nicole Villa Krassner, who has been elevating this event for us for the past five years, ensuring our mission shines through every detail. Together, we raised an amazing $630,000 to meet the growing demand for our mentoring services – all provided at no cost to the children and families enrolled in our programs..
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​Notable attendees:
​Lisa (and Travis) Pearson, Board Chair; Martha E. Conte, Campaign Chair; Beryl and Jim Potter, Jim is a board member; Tom Keiser, Former Board member and long time member of our community; Dan Ashley, ABC 7 and emcee for the evening; ​Ama Daetz, ABC 7 and emcee for the evening