Through this period of isolation, our mentors at Big Brothers Big Sisters help remain a source of hope, comfort and connection for children in our community. Physical distancing may have changed the way our matches interact, but these friendships are resilient and strong.
Here are a few of the creative ways our mentors are taking their matches virtual:
ISAAC AND LITTLE BROTHER SHANE
Isaac and Shane connected on FaceTime for a virtual workout, with Big Brother Isaac cueing Shane on bicep curls.
“Being a consistent friend & role model knows no bounds,” says Isaac. “Mentoring (and overall sense of well-being) ALWAYS matters.”
JASMINE AND LITTLE SISTER AALIYAH
“My little, Aaliyah aka Princess aka Lil Sav (cause she’s a savage) and I were used to hanging out almost every week to do homework, go to Girl Scouts meetings, or just put together a TikTok video. I think it’s incredibly important to keep up that same energy with my Little, as much as possible, while continuing to practice social distancing.
We started off texting, but once the situation started getting more serious, I implemented the Marco Polo app. Marco Polo is a cool family app that lets us send video messages back and forth to each other. So, I told her no more texting … from now on, we communicate through Marco Polo until this thing is over and we can hang out!
To keep the conversation flowing, I broke down and watched AALIYAH’S favorite TV show: Stranger Things. Not only do we get to talk about everything that happened in the show, but she also got cool points for putting me on to two of my favorite shows: Stranger Things and The Flash.
My Little is more than a Little — she’s my sister. and I think it’s important for her to know she’s still awesome and no matter what, she will always have me in her corner.”
— Jasmine, Big Sister to Aaliyah
NANNY AND LITTLE BROTHER KOBE, HIGH SCHOOL BIGS
High School Bigs match Nanny and Kobe are writing letters to each other to see how they’re doing! Just knowing their Big is thinking of them can be a huge help to our Littles right now.
Big Brothers Big Sisters is committed to sustaining connection for these matches through the COVID-19 pandemic. More resources on virtual connection are available for Bigs at this link.
