BRATTLEBORO — Big Brothers Big Sisters of Windham County is making a special effort to recruit new volunteers, especially males, during January's National Mentoring Month.
“Most, though not all, of the 30 children on our waiting list are boys,” explained Kristy Smith, program director of Big Brothers Big Sisters in Windham County.
Smith added she isn't surprised: she'd been a case manager for a year before being promoted to director of the program, and knew fewer men volunteer their time, and that roughly 75 percent of their mentees, or “littles,” come from single-parent households, she explained in a press release.
“We have some fantastic male mentors, but we need more of them.”
According to Smith, the other parent is often not part of the picture in these children's lives, whether owing to incarceration, separation, or irrevocable differences with the custodial parent, or death.
“We have a number of single parents who are homebound due to health issues, and having another adult who can attend their children's sports games or do physically active activities with them has been a lifesaver on many levels,” Smith said.
She cited national research showing that “mentoring” -pairing a caring adult volunteer with a young person for a mutually rewarding friendship - is an effective method of addressing all sorts of youth-related issues, from combating drug and alcohol use and violence to getting along better with their families and peers.
She said boys and girls between 5 and 15 are on a wait list for a mentor - essentially a caring friend and companion to a child; someone a child can hang out with, get to know, and have fun with.
Smith said Big Brothers Big Sisters offers two flexible options for volunteers who want to mentor a child:
• A school-based program offers volunteers the opportunity to visit with a child during lunch or recess at least once a week in Wilmington, Bellows Falls, or Brattleboro. This option is for people who prefer the structure of meeting on their lunch hour at the child's school.
• The community-based program allows volunteers to meet with a child during their own time and play sports, take a walk, or hang out for at least four hours a month.