Tommy's Match Success

Tommy and his Big Brother, Wayne, were matched when Tommy was in the fifth grade.  Now Tommy is in the eighth grade and the time has come for the match to end.  Wayne, now 82, and in declining health, is moving to an assisted living home in another town.  Tommy's Mentor Manager brought them together for their closure meeting.  Tommy presented Wayne with a gift.  It was a picture, beautifully framed, of Tommy with the words, "A hundred years from now it will not matter what your bank account was, the sort of house you lived in, or the kind of car you drove...but the world may be different because you were important in the life of a child."  Everyone was in tears.

Tommy cares deeply for his Big Brother and he will always remember Wayne as a big part of his life. 

 

Randy's Match Success

It was love at first sight when Big Brother, Fred, and Little Brother Randy, first met.  Randy was seven years old and living with his mother and grandmother.  They welcomed Fred because they both felt that Randy needed a strong male role model in his life.  At first Randy was bashful, but as he and Fred got to know each other, he never wanted Fred to leave. 

Fred has taken Randy to Mote Marine several times and they have enjoyed nature walks, attended the Venice Philharmonic and Fred has taught Randy to play tennis.

When Fred goes to New Hampshire for the summer, he and Randy keep in touch by e-mail.  Randy is eleven years old now and his relationship with Fred continues to grow.  Randy calls Wednesday "Fred's Day" because that's when Fred picks him up from school.  Fred says that Randy begins negotiating in April for Fred to stay just one more week before he leaves for the summer.  Fred has been a bright light during the difficult times in Randy's life and, together, they continue to bring magic into each of their lives.

 

Sabrina's Match Success

Sabrina lost her mother three years ago and was matched with Big Sister, Adria, a year later.  At that time, she was not attending school regularly because she was depressed and some days she just stayed in bed.  The school counselor asked Big Brothers Big Sisters to find a Big Sister for the Bigs In School program for Sabrina to see. 

Adria and Sabrina were matched and at first met only at school, but as time passed they found that they had a lot in common such as shopping and talking on the phone so they decided to become a Community Based match.

They go to all the Big Brothers Big Sisters functions including Bowl for Kids Sake where Sabrina told how lonely she had been for her mother and how Adria had become, not a replacement, but a trusted friend to share her feelings with and who understand and didn't judge her.

Sabrina is part of Adria's family and the once depressed girl is getting good grades and attending school on a regular basis.

 

Juan's Match Success

It was difficult for Juan and his Big Brother, Bob to see each other at school because Juan's teachers did not want him to miss any class time because his free periods were taken u-p by remedial classes.  Yet, because Juan's mother works, he is alone after school and has a lot of free time.  Bob's business is within biking distance from Juan's home, but Juan didn't have a bicycle.  The staff at Big Brothers Big Sisters recommended that Juan receive a bicycle through the Moose Club Christmas Bicycle Party.

Juan began biking to Bob's place of business and Bob offered him a job entering data into the computer for the company.  He works five days a week from 3-5pm and, then, he and Bob work on homework assignments together afterward.  Both Juan and Bob are happy with the arrangement.  They are anticipating better grades for Juan.  Juan is encouraged about the progress and is more motivated to improve in his schoolwork.

 

Van's Match Success   

Little Brother, Van, and his Big Sister, Kris meet one day a week to work on his homework yet Van needed a computer to complete his assignments at home.

Van's Mentor Manager at Big Brothers Big Sisters received a call from another Big Sister, Melanie, who wanted to donate her used computer and asked if there were any Little's who would be able to use it.  The Mentor Manager coordinated with Van's mother to deliver and set it up.

Van was excited to get his very own computer and his Big Sister, Kris, has noticed that he is more motivated to do his assignments and together they are working at improving his grades.  They are hopeful that he will be passing sixth grade.