WHO ARE BIG BROTHERS AND BIG SISTERS?
Big Brothers and Big Sisters are volunteers. They share the common desire to help a child and feel this can best be accomplished through establishing a one-to-one relationship.
Like our Little Brothers and Little Sisters, our volunteers come from a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences. They are at least 18 years of age and may be single or married, perhaps even with a family of their own. New "Bigs" come to the agency for various reasons. Some have grown up in single parent families themselves, others want to share their own positive childhood experiences. All Bigs are willing to make a one year commitment to spend a few hours per week with their "Little."
Each volunteer is carefully screened to insure the presence of sincere motivation and emotional stability. For each volunteer the agency compiles personal and professional references, runs a fingerprint check, and performs a personal in-depth office interview and brief tour of the applicant's home. Final decisions of acceptance are made by a professional screening committee.
WHO ARE THE LITTLE BROTHERS AND LITTLE SISTERS?
Little Brothers and Little Sisters are children living in Santa Cruz County. They are children in need of a one-to-one relationship with a special adult friend. "Littles" are between the ages of 7 and 14. The majority of the children live in single parent families and may have little or no contact with the absent parent.
"Littles" are from all sorts of backgrounds and come in various sizes, colors, religions, and nationalities. The children and their families are referred to the agency by schools, courts, social agencies, relatives, or the families may call on their own. The child and parent are asked to complete a thorough application and are personally interviewed by a professional staff member to help best determine the exact need in each individual situation.
All Little Brothers and Little Sisters need and want the friendship of an adult to help them through difficult childhood experiences. Through their relationship with a Big Brother/Big Sister, they hopefully won’t experience the problems that often beset children from single parent families.
HOW A MATCH IS MADE
Matching a volunteer and a child is an exciting and thorough process. The volunteer and child are carefully screened and evaluated. Consideration is then made of such factors as geographical location, personality, and needs and interests to insure the best possible compatibility between a child and volunteer. The volunteer’s and parent’s preferences are also considered.
The match itself is made after the volunteer and parent have met face-to-face in our office and mutually approve of making the match. This “pre-match” meeting is facilitated by the caseworker and provides both parties the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about each other. If the volunteer and parent both want to proceed with the match, we will set up a match meeting in the office. In this meeting the child and volunteer are introduced, and after a brief discussion plans are made for their first visit.
Most volunteers find their Little Brother or Little Sister eager to be friends, but often some patience is needed and the Big Brother or Big Sister must not expect to be completely accepted, trusted or appreciated right away. However, by spending a few hours together each week, doing things you both mutually enjoy, a relationship is established which can help provide the child with a greater sense of acceptance, well-being and self-worth.
THE APPLICATION PROCESS
After you have filled out your application, a Case Manager will to call to review your information and answer any questions you may have about the program. You will receive the fingerprint packet by mail so you can schedule a fingerprint appointment for both Federal and State reports (which are automatically sent to our office). Following your fingerprint appointment, just call the office to schedule your office interview. In the meantime, we will be collecting the reference information from the 4 references you have given us, the fingerprint reports and your Driver’s Record.
The Office Interview is an in-depth personal interview that takes from 1 to 1 ½ hours, depending on how much information you have to share. This information helps us determine if this is the appropriate volunteer program for you and get to know you better. It also helps us to begin thinking about which children on the waiting list would be a good fit to Match you with. We will also make a copy of your current Auto Insurance Information and Driver’s License. All this information will go to the screening committee and if it makes sense to go forward with the process, a Home Visit is scheduled.
The Home Visit is cheduled at your convenience and is a time to answer any more questions you may have about the program, as well as to allow us to meet others persons living in your home. It also assures parents that we have visited your home and it is a safe environment for their child to go to if you choose to do activities with the child in your home.
Prior to being Matched, we review and provide you with a Volunteer Training Manual, information on Child Sexual Abuse Prevention and Program Guidelines. You will also be invite you to the next Group Training with other Volunteers, before or after you are Matched.
Once you have completed the application process and are accepted, we will share the children’s background information that would be appropriate Matches to you so you can help chose with whom you would like to be Matched. We will schedule a meeting with their parent so you can learn more about the child through their parent’s eyes and decide if this is the right child for you.
We will be happy to answer any questions you may have about the screening process and hope you will feel free to call us.
HELPING THE RELATIONSHIP TO GROW
Throughout the match, the volunteer, the child and the family are never left without the assistance of the professional staff of the agency. Each match is assigned to an agency caseworker for ongoing supervision. Volunteers have monthly contact with the caseworker to discuss their feelings about the match and help is available should any problems occur. For those volunteers who wish to get together to discuss their matches with other Big Brothers or Big Sisters, group meetings are held by our professional staff.
After the first year of the match the volunteer, the Little Brother/Little Sister, and the parent meet with the caseworker to discuss their mutual feelings about the relationship that has been established between the volunteer and child. This is most helpful in maintaining a focus that can best meet the needs of all concerned.
WHAT CAN THE VOLUNTEER EXPECT?
Before being matched, each volunteer becomes fully acquainted with the agency and the basic expectations for being a Big Brother or Big Sister. He/she is matched with a child who has been selected for him/her based on interests, personality, and location.
The volunteer can expect support from the agency including professional consultation, group meetings, invitations to group activities, and our newsletter. While the agency does not encourage its volunteers to spend money on the child, it is realistic to assume that small amounts will be expended for food and other miscellaneous items.
It should be stressed that it is the volunteer’s responsibility to call their Little Brother or Little Sister to arrange get-togethers. He/she should expect the cooperation of the parent, but should remember the role of the volunteer is to relate to the child, not the parent.
The volunteer may realistically expect that being a Big Brother or Big Sister will be one of the most meaningful experiences of his/her life! |
