Program Encourages Written Appreciation, Personal Connections for Big Brother Hero in Texas

Arlington, TX – Heroes In Our Midst, a national outreach program created to honor America’s everyday heroes, announced today the selection of its first hero, Carlos Linares, a husband, lawyer, father-to-be and long-time mentor with Big Brothers Big Sisters of North Texas. The announcement came at a news conference and special pep rally at Timberview High School near Dallas, where Linares’ “Little Brother” is a senior and captain of the football team.

    Linares, 36, an attorney with the Recording Industry Association of America in Dallas, has volunteered for more than five years as a Big Brother to 18-yr-old Little Brother Ray Alake. Thanks to Linares’ continued support, Alake will graduate this May and has signed a full athletic scholarship to play football with the University of Houston. To honor Linares and other everyday heroes like him, the Heroes In Our Midst program is encouraging Texans to express their appreciation of Linares by sending him a card or note recognizing his commitment to improving the lives of others. Correspondence should be mailed to:

        BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF NORTH TEXAS
        ATTN: Carlos Linares, Heroes In Our Midst
        205 W. Main Street
        Arlington, TX 76010

    Linares, whose passion for law is second only to his love for music, first met Alake just after graduating law school, where he had resolved that if he achieved his dream of becoming a lawyer in the music industry, he would do something to give back to the community. After passing the Bar exam in Texas, he contacted the North Texas BBBS agency, which introduced him to Alake. Alake was 13 at the time of his match and had a similar love and appreciation of music as Linares. At the time, Alake was living in a single-family home with his mother, and a male influence was something he desperately needed.

    “Carlos came into my life at just the right time—my dad wasn’t around and I needed another guy to talk with and look up to,” said Alake. “When I went to Timberview, he encouraged me to keep up my grades and focus on playing football as my chance to go to college. Thanks to Carlos, I’ll be heading to the University of Houston in the fall.”
At today’s event, which was attended by Ray Alake and his mother Bose as well as national representatives from the program’s founding partners Big Brothers Big Sisters and the Greeting Card Association, Linares was selected as the first-ever Heroes In Our Midst honoree. He was presented with a personalized bronze medallion as the Timberview High School band played the school’s fight song.

    “We couldn’t think of a better place to honor Carlos than at the high school where he encouraged his ‘Little’ to improve his grades and continue playing football,” says Charles Pearson, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of North Texas. “Carlos has been instrumental in helping Ray get a full athletic scholarship to the University of Houston and helping him become a young man that we are so proud to call our “Little.”

    “When it came to identifying a hero in our midst among the more than 240,000 Big Brothers Big Sisters volunteers, we weren’t looking for amazing feats of heroism but instead we wanted to find everyday Americans doing their part to improve the lives of others,” said Judy Vredenburgh, president and CEO, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. “Carlos Linares is exactly that—someone who spends those little moments that make such a big difference to his “Little Brother”, and we are asking people to write him and others like him to thank them for their contributions.”

    A program of GCA and BBBS, Heroes In Our Midst was created to encourage recognition of the unsung heroes across the nation and to inspire others to become heroes by building the one-to-one connections that help bring individuals and communities together. To demonstrate their appreciation to Linares’ and to Big Brothers Big Sisters of North Texas, the Greeting Card Association donated $1,000 to the local agency in Linares’ name. The donation will enable BBBS to recruit, match and support one Big Brothers Big Sisters friendship match.
“Carlos is an inspiring example of what it means to be an everyday hero, and the positive power of connecting. We are honored to name him the first hero of the Heroes In Our Midst program,” said Valerie Cooper, executive vice president of the Greeting Card Association.

    For more information about Heroes In Our Midst, which will announce its second hero next month, visit the official program website at www.HeroesInOurMidst.org or send an e-mail to info@HeroesInOurMidst.org.

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Big Brothers Big Sisters is the oldest, largest and most effective youth mentoring organization in the U.S. It has been the leader in one-to-one youth service for more than a century, developing positive relationships that have a direct and lasting impact of the lives of young people. Big Brothers Big Sisters serves 240,000 children, ages 6 through 18, in all 50 states. The national offices are located in Philadelphia. To volunteer or donate, visit www.bbbsa.org.

The Greeting Card Association, headquartered in Washington, DC, represents nearly 300 U.S. and international greeting card publishers and suppliers. It is dedicated to celebrating, promoting and preserving the tradition and cultural values of exchanging greeting cards.

 

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