Program highlight: Big Friends Little Friends of Family Service Association

January is National Mentoring Month, and we are highlighting a number of perspectives on mentoring, events, and ways you can get involved in the field. Today’s post, a match highlight, is submitted from Big Friends Little Friends of Family Service Association.

• What is your name and what is your role at the organization? Please give us some information about your program.
  Amanda Miranda – case manager
  Ramona Turcotte – program coordinator
  Big Friends Little Friends (BFLF) of Family Service Association is a community-based, one-on-one mentoring program serving the Greater Fall River area (Fall River, Somerset, Swansea, Rehoboth, Tiverton & Westport). We serve children ages 7-14 who come from a wide array of diverse backgrounds. Mentors and mentees are matched according to compatibility and similar interests.

• How does mentoring impact the communities you serve?
  As Fall River and its surrounding communities are becoming more diverse and demonstrate a higher need for positive interactions and influences on youth, mentoring has a large impact on the communities in which we serve. Mentoring serves several functions and has been proven to increase social functioning, academic performance, and prevention of problematic behaviors.
• How has mentoring impacted the youth you serve? Mentoring has impacted the youth we serve in many capacities. Mentees and mentors alike have reported a higher level of academic progress, increased self-esteem/self-image/self-efficiency, increased social functioning, and prevention of risky behaviors such as bullying and gang involvement.
• What is your program doing to celebrate National Mentoring Month?
  Big Friends Little Friends, in collaboration with SMILES and Big Brothers Big Sisters of New Bedford, will be hosting a 2013 Southcoast Mentoring Rally in the Great Room of People, Inc. on Thursday, Jan. 17, 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. This date coincides with “Thank Your Mentor Day.” This event will raise awareness of mentoring, recognize mentoring programs available within the surrounding communities and recruit new mentors. Agency representatives, municipal officials, local business representatives and current mentors and their mentees will be in attendance.
• What advice would you give to adults looking to become mentors?
  Mentoring a child is a great way to give back to the community. There are very few positive role models for children this day in age. With children serving as our future, it is essential to provide them with positive relationships and influences, and mentoring does just that! Not only will a child benefit from the companionship, guidance, and support a mentoring friendship can provide, it also benefits the adults. It is just as rewarding, if not more so, to make a difference in the life of a child.

Family Service Association has established the Big Friends Little Friends program because children need the friendship of a concerned adult to help them reach their full potential. For more information, visit www.frfsa.org.

Meet the match: Alexyss and Elizabeth

For the ninth consecutive year, New England’s World Champion Nose Tackle Vince Wilfork and The Safety Insurance 98.5 The Sports Hub New England Patriots Radio Network have teamed up with Mass Mentoring Partnership, to ensure that more young people are connected to caring adult mentors who will listen to them, stand by them and guide them. As a part of this initiative, Wilfork and 98.5 have extended invitations to mentor/mentee matches in the MMP network to attend a home game, and MMP chooses a match for each game based on the most compelling stories submitted. On game day, chosen matches are met by Bianca Wilfork and 98.5 The Sports Hub.

Alexyss Valez, 14, got to experience the thrills of a Patriots game on Oct. 21 with her mentor Elizabeth Coy. They have been matched for more than two years through Big Friends Little Friends/Family Service Inc. of Lawrence.

Elizabeth says that Alexyss was dealing with numerous tough issues when they were initially matched. Over the course of their relationship though, Alexyss has truly blossomed.

“Her life is headed in a much more positive direction,” Elizabeth says. “She has greatly improved in school…and she’s generally made better choices to make her life better.”

From Elizabeth’s perspective, she has relished Alexyss’ ability to better control her emotions and communicate more clearly.

“To know that I have had even the smallest positive impact on this young woman who has had more struggles in her young life than many do in a lifetime makes me feel overwhelmed with gratitude that I am able to help,” Elizabeth says.

The two enjoy doing “anything where we can talk,” Elizabeth says. That includes grabbing a bite to eat, watching sports, and shopping, as well as sharing their love for music and photography.

Elizabeth hopes, “My goal is that we stay friends forever. I have a friend for life and it makes my heart fuller helping and being a mentor for Alexyss.”

Big Friends Little Friends is a youth mentoring program that matches caring adult mentors with young people who could benefit from a relationship with a positive adult role model.  The goal of the program is to develop the positive potential of young people by providing them with support, guidance and friendship.  Big Friends Little Friends serves 15 towns in the Merrimack Valley. For more information: http://www.familyserviceinc.com/WhatWeDo/BFLFOverview.html.

Meet our runners: Shannon Rielly

For the second year in a row, Mass Mentoring Partnership is honored to be an official charity partner of the B.A.A. Boston Marathon® on April 16. We want you to meet our amazing runners. Let’s go Team MMP!

Shannon Rielly

Runner: Shannon Rielly
Longest run to date: 15 miles
Favorite song to listen to while running: Depends on my mood of course but really anything that can pump me up
Favorite post-run snack: I live off of peanut butter sandwiches!

1. Why did you choose to run the 2012 Boston Marathon for MMP?

I have always been a runner and have had a goal to run the Marathon, but I wanted to do it for a reason. I have been involved in Big Friends Little Friends for almost four years and my little brother is so important in my life. I felt as though Team MMP was the perfect team to run for!

2. What has been the most rewarding experience of your training and/or fundraising so far?

The fundraising has definitely been the hardest part, but it has been so rewarding to see the number of people who give. Many of my family members and friends have reached out to people they know on my behalf, and I cannot believe the number of people who give who I have never even met or talked to. It is very inspiring.

3. Tell me about your mentee! Have you told him about the Marathon?

My mentee is named Kevin and he is 8-years-old. I have told him about the Marathon, but I am not sure if he understands how long 26 miles really is. He always says to me, “Can I run it with you because I can run faster than you! I can beat you!” I think deep down he is really appreciative.

4. What is the best piece of advice a mentor can give?

“You can accomplish anything you put your mind to.” Personally, I have always been a driven person, but I realize now that some children aren’t given the amount of encouragement as I was. I like to tell my mentee he can do anything if he tries.

5. Complete this sentence: When I finish the Marathon, I will feel…

Accomplished. This has been something I have had on my mind for years, and I know when I finish I will be extremely proud of myself.

If you would like to read more about Shannon or make a donation to her fundraising, please visit http://www.razoo.com/story/Shannon-Rielly.

Program highlight: Big Friends Little Friends at Family Service, Inc.

We’re celebrating Mentoring Day at Fenway today with a Red Sox Mentoring Challenge program highlight of Big Friends Little Friends at Family Service Inc., in Lawrence. Mercedes Tran is the match coordinator there.

MMP: Tell us a little about your mentoring program and your role.

Mercedes: I am the match coordinator for Big Friends, Little Friends in Lawrence. I interview mentors and mentees in order to learn more about their personalities. I find out about their hobbies, likes and dislikes, so that the match is made for the best future friendship possible.

MMP: Why do you feel mentoring is important?

Mercedes: Young people need adults who support them. It’s also really important for kids to have someone who shares life’s moments with them.

MMP: Your program is participating in this year’s Red Sox Mentoring Challenge, an initiative designed recruit more caring Massachusetts adults as mentors. Which Red Sox player do you think is the best mentor on the team?

Mercedes: I think that David Ortiz is the best mentor on the Red Sox. His positive attitude both on and off the field shows he cares about kids and his community.

MMP: What do you think is the most important thing for people to know if they are thinking about becoming a mentor?

Mercedes: I was a mentor, and I had a lot of fun with my mentee. It was a personally rewarding experience, and it was as simple as “being there” when she needed me. We discussed challenges and focused on her dreams. She knew that she could accomplish more than what was immediately visible to her.

MMP: How can people learn more about mentoring opportunities with your organization?

Mercedes: Visit our web site or attend one of our “Mentor for a Day” events. It really lets you try mentoring on for size!