Story from Little Brother Arol:
My Big Brother, Dana, is the absolute best Big Brother in the world. He is not a technology guy and I didn’t think I would like that, BUT he sure gets me out doing fun things! We have played basketball, baseball, gone skating, played pool, gone bowling, golfing and hiking and lots more.
Dana has come to my grade 8 grad, my Cross Country meet and my birthday party – I thought he should come for Christmas too, but it couldn’t be done.
Dana and I have gone to visit the tree that was planted for my Mom, that was a special day. We hiked in to see it and hiked around Grey Sauble Conservation Authority.
Before I met Dana, I had never been golfing, (I thought I would hate it – but I love it), I never thought I would be interested in Cross Country running, but Dana was on the team in high school and now I am on the school team – so I guess Dana has been very good for me!
We did a bowling for fund raising for Big Brothers, that was a blast, we got our picture in the paper.
I never really enjoyed hockey games until I met Dana, now we go quite often and have a ton of fun.
I think everyone should consider being a Big Brother – I don’t think they would be as good as Dana – but they can try!
Story from Big Brother Matt:
“I’ve been a Big for over 5 years now. It’s more than just a volunteer experience, its more than going to see a person and doing something with them. It has been more of a friendship that has been created over the years…the bond we have has become that much more special.”
Story from Little Brother Caleb:
“If I was never apart of big brothers Matt and I would have never met and life would feel empty without the fun stuff we do together.”
Story from Big Sister Kimi:
“I’ve been a Big Sister since 2018 and I’ve enjoyed building a relationship with my Little. Although Covid presented challenges, we kept in contact through video chats and once restrictions were lifted, it was great to catch up and enjoy the outdoors. BBBS is a wonderful organization that has always provided support and opportunities for my Little and I.”
Story from Big Brother Mike:
“I met Graiden my “Little”, at the school I work at in the fall of 2019 and we’ve been connected ever since. It isn’t the typical way for a “Big” and “Little” to be paired, but it has worked out for us. We’ve been on a lot of different adventures, such as, sea-doo rides, swimming in the Bay, golfing, and hikes/walks with my dog Maxi. On days when we aren’t feeling as active, you can find us relaxing by watching movies, playing video games and eating delicious food.
Graiden is such a caring and compassionate boy, and I can only hope he’s learned as much from me as I have from him. Over the last year and a half we have been able to have so much fun, and make many memories. Covid-19 has added challenges, but we’ve been able to maintain a strong connection throughout.
Being a “Big” has been a very rewarding experience, and if you have a “little” bit of extra time, I strongly encourage you to get involved with the Big Brothers and Big Sisters program, you won’t regret it!”
Story from Little Brother Graiden:
What Graiden enjoys about Big Brothers: “Having a nice friend who is kind, heartful, and funny! He is loving, buys me food, takes me on walks and golfing. He takes me to hockey and watches movies and plays video games with me too.”
Story from Big Sister Brooke:
“Over the past 18 months of being matched with Annakah, we have done so much together and have learned so much about each other. From making bracelets, baking, painting nails, walking our dogs, going to community events, crafts, drawing and colouring, and teaching her how to play lacrosse, we have experienced so many great things together, making many great memories to look back on. We have many goals to achieve, like trying new things together, but most importantly, making more memories and visits to look forward to.
As a Big, it has been such a rewarding experience. I have had the privilege of being a big sister for over 3 years now and have been mentoring Annakah for the last 18 months, watching her grow and gain the confidence of such a strong, beautiful young woman. I feel that her presence has made me a much better person.
I am honoured to be a mentor at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Grey Bruce. Whether you are a little, who is an individual who just needs that bit of extra support, or a big, who is someone who has that extra love and support to give, I cannot stress enough how fulfilling it is to be a part of such an amazing organization. There is nothing bigger nor better than watching our youth believe that they can achieve their goals and dreams. Start something BIG.”
Story from Little Sister Annakah:
“I have been a Little with Big Brothers Big Sisters for about 18 months now, and I love the program. My big and I do so much together. We love to bake together, spend time together, and always love to learn new things! I feel comfortable with my Big Sister because she is kind, easy to talk to, and we always find fun things to do. I hope that others enjoy the program as much as I do!”
Story from Big Sister Steph:
“I have been a Big Sister since January of 2020, and despite most of my time of being a Big through the pandemic, my Little and I have still been able to maintain our relationship through it all. It is fun to be able to provide an outlet for her to chat and joke around with, as well as spend time together when we are able. Being a mentor has been such a positive impact on my life and I look forward to continuing to provide leadership to youth in our community.
Over the last year I have been matched with my Little Crystal. We have been able to do many things together such as sledding, painting, baking, video games and crafts. When Covid hit, we had to modify to a more virtual connection but that hasn’t stopped up from keeping in touch and sending videos and texts to each other. During the summer when it was allowed, we would even take bike rides and walks together to make sure we spent time together!
I have only been a big for a year, but it is an incredibly rewarding and fulfilling experience. I have learned a lot about myself during this last year as well. I decided to become a big to show younger girls that they can do anything they put their minds to! I am a full-time career firefighter, so it is awesome to show young girls what a little hard work can accomplish.
It has been an absolute pleasure seeing Crystal mature as she navigates through high school and is growing into such a beautiful young lady. I’m proud of how she keeps applying herself and how creative she is with anything she puts her mind to!
If you are considering becoming a big brother or sister, I cannot emphasize enough how much of an amazing experience it is to empower youth and watch them achieve their goals and dreams.”
Story from Big Brother Larry:
“As a Big, I have to admit that mentoring is a great part of the process. To mentor means to advise a younger colleague. In this case the young’ in is a little brother with no father or older brother in the same household. Most important is that you have a chance to change a life for a disadvantaged little brother.
I’d like to tell you a story. I have been a Big for a number of years and back some time ago I lived near Newmarket and had a Little Brother within the system. On attending a yearly appreciation night for the Bigs, I had at that time finished my fifth year with the same Little guy. Each little had to get up in front of the gathering and give a little speech as to what their BIG meant to them. Well, one of the other littles was relaying his story. He explained that when he and the big started out he wasn’t too keen on the idea. The little was a poor student, skipping class and not doing well. The story went on how the Big patiently gained the little brother’s confidence, started helping him with schoolwork. He started to like school and the grades improved. This little was now 18 yrs. old and with a great satisfaction he announced that his BB and he were heading for McGill University following Tuesday to ENROL HIM IN HIS UNDRGRADUATE studies. This is a person who never would have made this leap if it had not been for the patience and perseverance of the BB. You could see the sense of accomplishment in the big smile!
As for myself, I can still remember the smile on a little sister’s face when she conquered her own fear. It was a funded event for both sexes, and we were at an indoor climbing park. I’ve had experience rock-climbing and volunteered to belay this little sister. She was within about 1/2 metre of making it to the top. I can still here her words “I can’t do this, I am afraid”. I yelled up “I have you on belay, I will not let you fall” and to emphasize the point I pulled down and made sure she could feel I had a hold of her. I coached her to the next foot hold, then the next hand hold and she made it. You should have seen the broad smile and sense of satisfaction on her face, high fives all around from everyone. What a life lesson, proceed with caution, make sure your safe and go beyond your fear!
I am so proud and happy with my Little Brother’s progress learning to ski, ride a two-wheeler, changing from an introverted, quiet Little, into a wonderful talented outgoing chatterbox. I’ve always wanted to help others, and this allows me to be a big kid again without being embarrassed.
If you want a sense of satisfaction, of accomplishment in making a difference, the REWARDS ARE ENDLESS.”
Story from Big Brother Tim:
“In September 2003 I signed up for the Big Brothers program hoping to be a mentor. Why? It starts when I met my wife whose family consisted of a single mother with 5 kids (4 girls and one boy). I started hearing how lucky her brother was to a have a Big Brother in his life as he was an extremely positive role model and mentor. She would tell me of activities and things he got to do that he would never have had the opportunity otherwise. We went on to have a family and as they got older, I started remembering the positive influence Big Brothers had on my brother-in-law.
Upon my signing up, I was matched with a young fellow and my positive experience started. We would do things like movie’s, bike riding, hockey games, bowling, etc. My little brother had a little brother himself who was also enrolled in Big Brothers and was waiting for a match. After much discussion with Big Brothers mentoring coordinator, myself, mother and little brothers I became Big Brother to brothers.
The experience was extremely rewarding. There were a number of events that occurred over the next few years in which led to my wife and myself to becoming legal guardian of one of the little brothers who went on to attend College and currently is still in touch regularly. I went on to be a big brother to 3 additional little brothers with positive experiences.”
