NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM) – Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Texas is looking for volunteers to mentor young boys.
The chapter’s president, Jenny Harper, said they have over 650 children waiting for mentors.
“90% of those are boys. Boys wait longer because women volunteer more than men do, so we are putting a special call out to all of the men out there,” she said.
She said these mentors are role models for young boys and girls, some of whom need positive influences in their lives.
Big Brothers and Big Sisters matches the volunteers to their littles – as these children are often called.
15-year old Cruzifixo Gonzalez had been waiting for a mentor for two years before finding one in Alberto Morales.
Now they have been together for six years. Cruz says he was very happy to have found Alberto.
“I really needed somebody to guide me in my life and I didn’t really grow up with my brother and sister beside me to help me, so I didn’t really have anybody to look up to,” he said.
Alberto said he wanted to help.
“I grew up with five sisters, and they’re all older than me and I enjoyed having that sibling there that could kind of help me guide me,” he said.
“I know not all kids have that opportunity, so I wanted to join and be able to be that mentor for somebody else,” he said.
They meet once a week for a couple of hours.
“We do a little bit of everything. We’ve been to museums. When he needs help with school, we’ve gone to the library to study or work on math problems,” he said.
“We’ve been to sports events. We’ve also gone out for ice cream. He’s run errands with me. He’s helped me out around my house.”
For Cruz, he looks forward to his weekly meeting with Alberto. He gets to play, bounce off ideas and talk about his future interests.
“I think right now what I’m thinking is to look into entrepreneurship marketing.”
Click here to find out more about volunteering for Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Texas.
