Your Campus Connection

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Description:

BIGS & LITTLES are the terms used when referring to the mentoring relationship between one adult and one child. This is the platform on which the separate Big Brothers and Big Sisters organizations were founded in New York in 1904. Our volunteers in the Big Brothers/ Sisters program share their time with one child through participating in a variety of activities that reflect the interests of both parties; it’s as simple as being a good friend to a good kid. BGCBigs works with Bigs to match them directly with Littles in ways that considers similar interests, geography and program type. Children with mentors experience incredible life benefits such as:

•Becoming 80% more likely to finish high school
•Becoming 2-4x less likely to bully, lie, cheat, steal or become involved in drugs and/or alcohol
•78% of our kids coming from a family history of social assistance (parents depending on welfare, food banks, etc., to make ends meet) do not experience the same challenges in their adulthood
•Their life time income is $300,000 dollars more, on average, than youth who did not have mentors

Qualifications:

There are no specific skills or experience required, however all volunteers are screened to gauge their appropriateness for our programs.

Training:

•Police check child welfare check
•1.5 - 2 hour screening interview
•1.5 - 2 hours volunteer training seminar
•Alberta Mentoring Partnership Certificate

Benefits:

People who mentor:

•Gain personal growth and development
•Have a positive new perspective on life
•Make a positive difference in the life of a child and the community
•See meaningful improvements in their own mental and physical health
•Report increased levels of happiness and energy
•Our agency has ticket lists for concerts and sporting events as well as agreements with various organizations to provide BIG/LITTLE perks

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Duration: Ongoing
Faculty: All Faculties
Location: Edmonton Outside Edmonton

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