About
Little Brothers - Friends of the Elderly (LBFE) is a national network of volunteer-based nonprofits "committed to relieving isolation and loneliness among elders," offering "people of goodwill the opportunity to join elders in friendship and celebration of life." Part of an international federation founded in France, LBFE has operated in the United States since its first chapter opened in 1959 and today serves socially isolated older adults through chapters in Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, New York, San Francisco, and Upper Michigan.
Mission
LBFE's mission is to relieve isolation and loneliness among elders. Its guiding motto, "Flowers before Bread," expresses founder Armand Marquiset's belief that "the greatest poverty is the poverty of love" — beyond basic necessities, people need the special joys that make life worth living.
What they do
- One-on-one visits through the Visiting Volunteer Program, pairing volunteers with isolated elders
- Special occasion celebrations for birthdays and holidays
- Outings and social gatherings that bring elders together
- Intergenerational engagement connecting older adults with younger generations
- Tech Connect, a digital literacy program helping elders get and stay online
All services are provided free of charge to the elderly people served, and the organization notes that reducing isolation has a direct impact on the health of older people, reducing stress and lowering blood pressure.
History
The organization was established in 1946 by Armand Marquiset, a French nobleman, as Little Brothers of the Poor, created after World War II to serve isolated and lonely elderly people who had lost their families in the war. It grew across France and internationally as La Federation Internationale des petits freres des Pauvres. The first U.S. chapter opened in 1959, and American chapters have served socially isolated elders in the spirit of the "Flowers before Bread" motto ever since.
Scale and impact
LBFE reports that it changes the lives of thousands of older people every year through its U.S. chapters in Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, New York, San Francisco, and Upper Michigan, and that the international federation it belongs to operates in 14 countries.
Financials
LBFE chapters in the United States are separately incorporated nonprofits with their own IRS filings (ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer lists distinct entities in Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, Hancock, Michigan, and elsewhere). For the Chicago-based entity named Little Brothers - Friends of the Elderly (EIN 36-2651505), fiscal year 2023 Form 990 data on ProPublica show total revenue of about $4.5 million, total expenses of about $4.2 million, and year-end assets of about $5.4 million.