News
Tom O'Brien Op Ed
01/19/2008
It’s Time for Men to Step Up and Become Big Brothers!
There are thousands of boys across the state in need of adult male guidance. One of them is waiting for you. Most of these boys are growing up in single parent homes where the father is not around on a regular basis. If we can connect these boys with the solid, safe role models they need and want, each one of them has a good chance of becoming a productive member of our society. And because we match our volunteer Bigs and Littles based on similar interests and personalities, you can have a great time while you do it.
I know from personal experience what it feels like to wait. Growing up in Arizona, I spent several years on the Big Brothers Big Sisters waiting list. Due to a shortage of volunteers I was never matched with a Big Brother. Luckily for me,after some scuffles and near misses with the law, in my teenage years I found a mentor who showed me how to get along in this complicated world. Like most of the boys on our waiting lists, I wasn’t a bad kid. My mentor didn’t have incredible skills or experience; however, he just took the time to show an interest in me and taught me what I needed to know. It’s that simple-- and easier than you think.
You can be a Big Brother to a boy and make a huge difference in his (and your) life in as little as four hours a month. Big Brothers Big Sisters offers several options that can easily accommodate busy schedules. You can volunteer in our School Based program and spend one hour each week with a child. Companies can get involved too. At CB Richard Ellis we are Partners in Education with Sandburg Elementary school. Each week ten of our employees see their Littles at times that fit each individual’s schedule through the “Bigs in Schools” program. Many Tulsa area companies are doing the same. In both Tulsa and Oklahoma City, Cox Communications is allowing supervisory level employees time to participate in our “Bigs in Clubs” initiative. This three-way partnership with Cox, Boys and Girls Clubs and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Oklahoma means that scores of children will have access to a mentor in an innovative after school program. The goal is to offer the same opportunity to the rest of the Cox workforce over the next few years. If more work places followed this lead the pool of mentors would increase dramatically. So if you are in a position to get your company or corporation involved now is the time to do it.
Big Brothers Big Sisters also offers a traditional, Community Based program, where volunteers spend a few hours a week, several times per month with a child. What a huge difference this can make in a child’s life.
The Big Brothers Big Sisters model works and it works wonders. National research shows our programs have a profound positive effect—matched children do better at home and in school, avoid early alcohol and drug use, and learn to control their anger and solve problems in positive ways. In other words, our Bigs give them the help they need to grow up right.
January is National Mentoring Month – what better time to make that call?
Tom O’Brien serves as the Chairman of the Board of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Oklahoma. He is also the President of CB Richard Ellis Oklahoma, with offices in Tulsa and Oklahoma City.