Darron and Tommy dig a hole for a day of ice fishing

Bigs. That’s what they call themselves, the people who volunteer as Big Brothers and Big Sisters. Linda Robertson and Darron Campbell of the Forest Service in Williams Lake are Bigs. And the children they and other Bigs work with? Littles, of course.

Big Brothers/Big Sisters’ roots go back to 1903 in Cincinnati, when a young businessman, Irvin Westheimer, came upon a boy in an alley searching for food in a garbage can. Westheimer fed the child, became his mentor and urged friends to follow suit. In 1913, they formed the Big Brothers association. Big Sisters soon developed along similar lines and the two organizations merged in 1977.

Darron got involved with the association before he joined the Forest Service. He was working for a local newspaper covering sports events and frequently ran into the Big Brothers/Big Sisters co-ordinator at these venues. "They’re always recruiting," Darron said.

Coincidentally, "I was looking for opportunities to volunteer. I didn’t have a lot of money but I had time to spare," he said.

Linda moved to Williams Lake two years ago and, with her family mainly in Manitoba, she, too, found she had time to spare.

Bigs are asked to make a commitment to spend four hours a week with their Littles for at least one year.

Linda and seven-year-old Joshua have been hanging together for 16 months now. They like to go snowshoeing, fishing and driving around looking for deer. Indoors, they play on the computer—Joshua is learning to use the Internet – and he likes to cook. Also, "there’s lots of make-believe," Linda said, adding that she enjoys "the fun of his company. Kids are so honest. And he’s an excuse for me to go to the circus or a movie."

Darron and Tommy, 11, have spent a lot of their time together over the past 2.5 years outdoors, which they both love. "Before, I would go fishing, biking, and such, alone," Darron said. "Now I have someone to go with."

And what does he get out of it, besides good company? "I feel I can be a positive example by demonstrating good ethics and not swearing and so on. It makes me feel I’m making a difference."

Independent studies commissioned by the organization show that Little Brothers and Sisters tend to enjoy better relationships with their peers, friends, and parents, and say they feel more emotionally supported and less criticized. They are 46 per cent less likely to use drugs. And more than 80 per cent of former Littles attain at least a secondary school diploma compared with 60 per cent of other people in their age group.

But in most communities there are never enough Bigs for the Littles who need one. The Williams Lake association, for example, has a half-dozen Bigs but more than 20 kids are waiting. Big Brothers/Big Sisters have organizations in about 28 B.C. communities, locations listed at www.bbsc.ca/html/Agencies.html

Linda and her Little, Joshua, surf the net

Linda and Joshua spend time together snowshoeing, fishing and driving around looking for deer

www.bbsc.ca