Doris Higgins said the Niles-Buchanan YMCA believes in the concept of “pay it forward.”

So when they received a generous donation of pumpkins from an anonymous donor, the YMCA decided to pass on the favor.

On Wednesday, the YMCA donated 31 pumpkins to the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Berrien and Cass for use in a peer-to-peer group with Berrien County fourth- graders.

Erin Grishaber, BBBSBC case manager, was grateful for the donation.

“Being a nonprofit, we don’t have a giant budget, so it (the donation) was crucial to being able to offer this activity for the kids,” she said.

Through the BBBSBC peer-to-peer group, fourth-grade students at International Academy at Hull in Benton Harbor painted pumpkins Wednesday with their senior mentors from Lake Michigan Catholic.

“They (the seniors) encouraged the kids to be creative and think outside the box, and have courage in their artistic ability,” Grishaber said.

Higgins said the donation was a win-win for the community.

“We were very pleased with the generous donation of pumpkins we received and were very glad to pay it forward,” she said.

Grishaber said BBBSBC is always looking for volunteers for its many programs. Anyone interested should call the BBBSBC at (877) 367-2244 or send email to info@bbbsofbc.org.