REPRESENTATIVES of Big Brothers of Greater Vancouver are looking to the community to help fill an urgent need for volunteers.
According to a written statement, while Big Brothers, which offers mentoring programs to at-risk children, is always looking for community members to get onboard, they're currently in need of 372 volunteers throughout the Lower Mainland and 16 on the North Shore.
January is a critical volunteer recruitment time for Big Brothers, says Joanne Kautz-Allard, program director, in the statement. The closer they get to summer, the more drastic a drop in applications they see, meaning more children sit on a wait list.
The six-to eight-week intake process means volunteers who sign up now won't start volunteering until late February at the earliest.
The timing is particularly imperative to the organization's In-School Mentoring Program, which involves volunteer participation throughout the school year only. By early March, it's too late for volunteers to join the program.
While they don't want people to rush their decision to volunteer, if it's something they've considered for a time, representatives ask them to take the initiative now and give them a call to get answers to their questions, says Kautz-Allard. While it is a commitment, most people find it's not as time consuming as they initially think.
Both men and women can take part in the flexible inschool program in just one hour each week. The better known Big Brothers program requires a two-to four-hour time commitment per week.
For more information, visit bigbrothersvancouver.com.
