Funded Agencies : Success Stories

Changing lives through mentorship: A Little Brother’s story

Thanks to Big Brothers of North Simcoe, a United Way of Greater Simcoe County
funded agency, Jacob has been inspired to “give back” to his community by
becoming a Big Brother volunteer.

Jacob is 19 years old and was a Little Brother for 4 years. Jacob was the youngest
of three children living in a single-parent family in Springwater Township. For two
years as a child, Jacob’s father did not exercise his visitation rights, which prompted
an inquiry for mentoring services.

Through funding received from United Way of Greater Simcoe County, Jacob and
other boys like him were placed in Big Bunch, a program for Littles awaiting a one-to-one Big Brother match. Big Bunch gave Jacob the opportunity to enjoy meaningful
recreational, educational, and cultural experiences in a small group setting where he
received regular personal attention from caring Big Bunch leaders.

Big Bunch attracts volunteers who cannot commit to a one-to-one match, but who
very much want to make a difference in a child’s life. Jacob is now participating in
the Big Bunch program as a junior volunteer. Although Jacob did not have a one-to-one match himself, he very much benefited from the Big Bunch group program and
wanted to continue to participate in a helping capacity.

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