Guidelines For Parents Of Little Brothers And Little Sisters

BBBS matches caring adult volunteers with children who typically are between the ages of 6 and 14 and will benefit emotionally, socially and educationally from companionship and a one-to-one relationship. All of our volunteers are carefully screened and meet BBBS recruiting requirements.

1. The Big is a special friend for your child. Although we hope you and your family will get to know your child’s Big Brother or Big Sister over a period of time, the Big’s primary relationship should be with your child; not with you or the Little’s brothers and/or sisters. For this reason, we encourage our volunteers not to spend a lot of time in a child’s home.
2. Arrangements for meetings. The Big will make arrangements with you about seeing your child. He or she also will notify you if there is a change in plans. Conversely, if you need to change the plans, please let the Big know.
3. The relationship takes time to grow. The relationship between a Big and a Little takes time to develop. Have patience. Your child may not appear to be benefiting from the relationship for a while. Give the relationship a chance. Don’t expect miracles.
4. Please don’t use this as a reward or punishment! It is tempting to use this "treat" of seeing the Big as a reward or to take it away as a punishment. Try not to do this or even threaten to do so because it may be detrimental to your child’s relationship with his or her Big.
5. Listen and share with your child. The Big is a friend, not a parent, and he or she does not replace you in any way. However, all the new attention your youngster receives from this friendship may cause your child to try to make you jealous or place further demands upon you. This is normal, but if you have questions or concerns, please call your Case Manager at Youth Services.
6. Setting limits. The volunteer will determine the amount of time he or she spends with your youngster. In addition to encouraging our volunteers to spend a consistent amount of time with their Little Brother or Sister, we ask them to make a one-year commitment to the relationship. We also encourage our volunteers to spend little or no money, so that money doesn’t become the focus of the relationship. We stress the value of the time Bigs and Littles spend together building a friendship and enjoying activities together, rather than money or material things.
7. Overnights. Overnight visits are not allowed for the first six months of the match. Your child is not necessarily expected to have overnights at all as a part of his or her friendship. After you and your child get to know the Big, overnights may be arranged if everyone thinks it’s a good idea. Separate sleeping accommodations are required.
8. Help with other problems. Raising a family in this day and age is difficult in the best of circumstances. The Big Brother Big Sisters Program tries to help in one small area of need by providing a friend for your youngster. Youth Services has many other programs which also may be of assistance to you and your family. Please let us know if you’d like more information about any of the agency’s other programs.
9. If problems develop with the Big Brothers Big Sisters Program. If problems or concerns arise, please call your Case Manager at 257-0361.
10. Stay in touch. We would like to hear from you and/or your child at least once a month to learn how things are going.
11. We are here to help. Please e-mail us at ysbbbs@sover.net or call us at 257-0361 anytime you have a problem, want to make a suggestion or just to say "hello." Thank you for giving your child the opportunity to participate in our program.

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