8 May - Foroige Youth Mentoring Programme ‘Big Brother Big Sister’ Calls for Adult Volunteers
Foróige, the national youth development organisation today called for adult volunteers, especially male volunteers, for its ‘Big Brother Big Sister’ (BBBS) Youth Mentoring Programme. The call came as over 100 Big Brother and Big Sisters and their equivalent Little Bothers and Little Sisters met in Delphi Adventure Centre in Galway for a national gathering to celebrate the programme and the positive impact it has on the lives of the participating young people.
The charity says they currently have a waiting list wishing to join the programme and “while all volunteers are welcome they are especially appealing for male volunteers to sign-up”.
The BBBS initiative is an internationally renowned youth mentoring programme that matches a young person (10-18years), who will benefit from extra support, with a caring adult volunteer. Over 3,000 young people, in 14 counties, in school and community settings in Ireland have benefitted from the programme so far.
John Cahill, Manager of the BBBS programme at Foróige says “We need volunteers. A volunteer can be from any walk of life. All that is required is to be able to give an hour of your time once a week to meet with a young person. It is not an academic programme. The emphasis is on supporting the young person and being involved in their lives in whatever way benefits the individual young person. This often involves participating in a shared hobby or interest and forming a trusting relationship and a go to person for them when they need support.”
Research has shown that matching young people with a caring adult volunteer is a powerful natural intervention that can assist a young person in reaching their full potential and John says, “this is what the programme is all about”.
The national gathering was funded through a donation by the Galway charity ‘Project Impact’ who supports other charities. The Big Brothers and Sisters and Little Brothers and Sisters got to bond through a variety of activities this weekend including kayaking, surfing, orienteering, music, photography and art and craft workshops.
Anyone interested in volunteering or learning more about Foróige’s Big Brother Big Sister Programme you can log on to the website: www.foroige.ie/bbbs or email bbbs.info@foroige.ie
Maria Whitmore,
Gordon MRM
maria@gordonmrm.ie