Big Brothers Big Sisters to expand programs to increase mentorship

Big Brothers Big Sisters Centre Wellington is expanding its mentorship programs.

The agency received more than $465,000 from the Ontario Trillium Foundation’s Grow Grant to expand the programs over a three-year period.

Though the expansion, Anneli Segura, the executive director of BBBS, said the agency is looking to create 25 to 30 new mentor-mentee matches each year.

“What’s really important to us is that young people that are paired with mentors develop meaningful relationships with caring adults, and that they have some job readiness and academic support as they become young adults,” Segura said.

Among the new features of the new and enhanced programs will be job shadowing and career planning to boost job readiness, mindfulness through nature sessions to support mental wellness, and nutrition and cooking classes to address food security.

The expansion will also help Big Brothers Big Sisters try to recruit more volunteers through different programs and initiatives, particularly male volunteers.

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Segura said there has been quite a shortage of male volunteers since the COVID-19 pandemic.

BBBS recently changed its Bigs and Blue initiative to the 1st Responder Empowerment Program. The program initially offered opportunities for mentorship of an OPP officer, but Segura said it has since expanded to include other first responders, such as firefighters and paramedics.

Segura said they want children to have these opportunities to explore all kinds of different things about themselves.

“Kids, and we know as humans, we don’t all come in one box, we don’t all like the same things,” she said.

The activities that youth participate in not only develop skills for future job opportunities but also allow them to simply be a kid.

She said the exposure to these new and different types of activities can pique a young person’s interest in pursuing that interest as they navigate through their young adulthood.

Segura said the agency is really important to the community’s future.

“This is our future residents and our future workforce. Hopefully, these kids will grow up and maybe study somewhere away at school but maybe come back to this area to raise their families,” she said.

The agency is hoping to get the program “off the ground” in the next couple of weeks.