# 2162 - 1985 22c International Youth Year: Big Brothers/Big Sisters
U.S. #2162
1985 22¢ Big Brothers/Big Sisters
International Youth Year
- Issued to coincide with the UN’s International Youth Year
- Only stamp in the Youth Year Set that doesn’t mark an anniversary
- Pictures a living family, which the USPS tries to avoid
Stamp Category: Commemorative
Set: International Youth Year
Value: 22¢, first-class rate
First Day of Issue: October 7, 1985
First Day City: Chicago, Illinois
Quantity Issued: 32,500,000
Printed by: American Bank Note Company
Printing Method: Photogravure
Format: Panes of 50 in sheets of 200
Perforations: 11
Why the stamp was issued: To coincide with International Youth Year and to honor the Big Brothers/Big Sisters organization.
About the stamp design: All four International Youth Year stamps were designed by Dennis Luzak. The stamps each picture young people in the outdoors with a similar color palette. The Big Brothers/Big Sisters stamp pictures an adult man and young boy and adult woman and young girl outside.
Special design details: The Big Brothers/Big Sisters stamp features a portrait of a real family that was friends with the stamp artist. That makes this one of a handful of US stamps to picturing living people, in stark violation of the USPS rule that forbids such a practice.
First Day City: The First Day ceremony for this set was held at the Chicago International Youth Services Conference in Illinois.
About the International Youth Year Set: Initially, the USPS planned to issue two separate stamps honoring the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program and the 75th anniversary of the Boy Scouts. They eventually decided to add stamps honoring the Camp Fire Girls and YMCA Youth Camping to tie the stamps into the United Nations’ proclamation of 1985 as International Youth Year. 1985 also marked the 100th anniversary of the founding of the first residential summer camp at Lake Orange near Newburgh, New York by the YMCA.
History the stamp represents: In 1979, the General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1985 as the International Youth Year in order to “Draw attention to the situation, needs, and aspirations of youth.” The theme was “Participation, Development, and Peace.” The goals were to stimulate public awareness of the needs of young people and to encourage youth to participate in economic and social development.
At the time of the 1985 International Youth Year, about one fifth of the population was in this age group. The special year emphasized the importance of preparing the youth to be the leaders of tomorrow and the stewards of our planet. In 2010, the U.N. celebrated the 25th anniversary of the International Year of Youth. At the time, the Secretary-General said, “Youth should be given a chance to take an active part in the decision-making of local, national, and global levels.”
Big Brothers/Big Sisters
On July 4, 1903, businessman Irvin F. Westheimer looked out the window of his Cincinnati office to see a young boy and his dog rummaging through the trash. He exclaimed to himself, “God did not create all men equal” and went down to talk to the boy. Young Tom was timid at first, but Westheimer took him to lunch and met his family. He helped Tom’s mother get a better job, but still wanted to do more. Westheimer shared the story with fellow businessmen and established one of the first Big Brothers groups in the country. In 1977, Big Brothers merged with Big Sisters, which had been founded in the early 1900s by Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt.
U.S. #2162
1985 22¢ Big Brothers/Big Sisters
International Youth Year
- Issued to coincide with the UN’s International Youth Year
- Only stamp in the Youth Year Set that doesn’t mark an anniversary
- Pictures a living family, which the USPS tries to avoid
Stamp Category: Commemorative
Set: International Youth Year
Value: 22¢, first-class rate
First Day of Issue: October 7, 1985
First Day City: Chicago, Illinois
Quantity Issued: 32,500,000
Printed by: American Bank Note Company
Printing Method: Photogravure
Format: Panes of 50 in sheets of 200
Perforations: 11
Why the stamp was issued: To coincide with International Youth Year and to honor the Big Brothers/Big Sisters organization.
About the stamp design: All four International Youth Year stamps were designed by Dennis Luzak. The stamps each picture young people in the outdoors with a similar color palette. The Big Brothers/Big Sisters stamp pictures an adult man and young boy and adult woman and young girl outside.
Special design details: The Big Brothers/Big Sisters stamp features a portrait of a real family that was friends with the stamp artist. That makes this one of a handful of US stamps to picturing living people, in stark violation of the USPS rule that forbids such a practice.
First Day City: The First Day ceremony for this set was held at the Chicago International Youth Services Conference in Illinois.
About the International Youth Year Set: Initially, the USPS planned to issue two separate stamps honoring the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program and the 75th anniversary of the Boy Scouts. They eventually decided to add stamps honoring the Camp Fire Girls and YMCA Youth Camping to tie the stamps into the United Nations’ proclamation of 1985 as International Youth Year. 1985 also marked the 100th anniversary of the founding of the first residential summer camp at Lake Orange near Newburgh, New York by the YMCA.
History the stamp represents: In 1979, the General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1985 as the International Youth Year in order to “Draw attention to the situation, needs, and aspirations of youth.” The theme was “Participation, Development, and Peace.” The goals were to stimulate public awareness of the needs of young people and to encourage youth to participate in economic and social development.
At the time of the 1985 International Youth Year, about one fifth of the population was in this age group. The special year emphasized the importance of preparing the youth to be the leaders of tomorrow and the stewards of our planet. In 2010, the U.N. celebrated the 25th anniversary of the International Year of Youth. At the time, the Secretary-General said, “Youth should be given a chance to take an active part in the decision-making of local, national, and global levels.”
Big Brothers/Big Sisters
On July 4, 1903, businessman Irvin F. Westheimer looked out the window of his Cincinnati office to see a young boy and his dog rummaging through the trash. He exclaimed to himself, “God did not create all men equal” and went down to talk to the boy. Young Tom was timid at first, but Westheimer took him to lunch and met his family. He helped Tom’s mother get a better job, but still wanted to do more. Westheimer shared the story with fellow businessmen and established one of the first Big Brothers groups in the country. In 1977, Big Brothers merged with Big Sisters, which had been founded in the early 1900s by Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt.