Story

“I’ve always wanted a big sister, a real one, ‘cause I’m an only child,” says Little Sister Olivia. “Most of my friends have older sisters, and it looks really fun.” But when Olivia was nine, she was diagnosed with anxiety and it was bad enough that she spent an entire summer indoors with her mom. “I could barely leave the house without feeling scared,” says Olivia, now 11. Her mom signed her up with Big Sisters and Olivia was matched with Ally, a 21-year-old kinesiology student. When the two first met a year ago, they were both nervous, but setting a goal for their relationship helped to get them on track. The goal they decided on was for Olivia to […]

“We’re really not big planners,” laughs Samantha. “Whenever we get together we love to just go with the flow and see where the day takes us.” “It’s true,” continues Cassandra. “Sometimes we’ll plan on doing a specific activity, but most of the time we end up doing something completely different.  “One of our favourite things to do together is play “tourist” in our own city,” says Samantha. We like to visit local attractions, taking the Big Bus tour downtown, and visiting the aquarium. I think we’re looking at the zoo next.” “And we should definitely go ice skating again!” chimes in Cassandra. “Can you tell that we’re spontaneous?” laughs Samantha. Both Big and Little Sister continue laughing as they recall […]

Reflecting on her own childhood, which was challenged with dysfunctional family dynamics, Cori states that she and her Little Sister, Tianna, are incredibly well matched, likely because they had similar childhoods. Despite initial nervousness, Cori and Tianna’s relationship has blossomed into an affectionate, compassionate, and fun-filled friendship.   “We were both nervous at first. I took a photo of us on our first day together and you can tell from our body language that we were both very timid—the affection wasn’t there yet—but now we’re at the point where we can say we love each other and give bear hugs!” After more than two years of being matched, Cori can see the transformations in Tianna. “I’ve noticed that Tianna likes […]

As the holiday season approaches, we thought we’d share this throwback letter from one of our Little Sisters, Darci. Here’s what she has to say. “My mother introduced me to the idea of having a Big Sister when stresses in my life were getting to me. There was a time when we did have an acceptable amount of money and when I did have friends, but one day all that seemed to disappear and, as I look back now, there were a lot of events that led up to me needing a Big Sister. My parents split up when I was young and that caused me to feel even more fearful and unstable. I had already witnessed violence and a […]

We talk a lot about how mentoring impacts the mentee, but what you don’t hear as often is how  our Big Sisters and families are impacted too. Here are three quotes we wanted to share from one of our matches who was matched for seven years. Sandy, Little Study Buddy Dominique’s Mom When my daughter had a psych assessment in grade four, I was informed of her learning disabilities. We were asked to leave the school (French Immersion) and find another school that would suit her needs. I was so upset, confused, and scared. It was a teacher at Dominique’s new school that suggested the Study Buddy program. How very grateful I am for that suggestion. Meeting Thea has been […]

Imagine being the fun parent all the time—that’s what Christy had in mind when she signed up to be a Big Sister. She made the choice to not have kids, but she still wanted to give back to someone younger. She loves being a Big Sister because she gets to be the “cool mom” once a week and hangs out with her awesome Little Sister, Eleanor. They love cooking together and they have big plans for the future. You can become a Big Sister too.  Mentoring is linked to improved academic, social, and economic benefits. Mentoring helps further education, accelerate engagement, promote healthy lifestyles, and ultimately break the cycle of poverty, violence, and drugs. Adults who had a Big Brother […]

Stacy and Arianna’s story is proof that mentoring benefits both Bigs and Littles. Little Sister Arianna and Big Sister Stacy have been matched for eight months and they are already reaping the fruits of mentoring. Stacy told Big Sisters about a time she was able to spread the kindness and love with her Little. It all began when Stacy told her Little about how she volunteered her time assembling shoe box gifts for Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child, an organization that gives boxes containing toys, school supplies, and hygienic items to underprivileged children in third world countries. When Stacy told this to Arianna, not much happened but months later Stacy was able to see how she had impacted the way […]

In February of 2007, I met a shy, quiet 7-year-old girl who loved reading, arts, crafts and ice cream. Still figuring out how to cope with a vision impairment, her love for reading was affected by this challenge and we spent most of our time together going to the library to foster that love for reading, without the pressures of time and distractions. Our relationship bloomed over our shared love for books, McDonald’s sundaes and various arts and crafts projects. Our relationship was built the way many friendships are – with time, patience, and curiosity. 10 years later, I just attended her high school graduation, and have watched her flourish into a confident, fun-loving, considerate and kind young adult. Our trips […]