Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City

Big Brothers Big Sisters is a phenomenal organization that works hard every day for the children of NYC. The dedicated staff devote countless hours to making sure every child that wants a mentor, gets one and that its a perfect match. I highly recommend you sign up to be a Big brother or sister and you will see the impact on not only the child’s life but your own as well!

1 star for the cause, which is great on paper, but their execution is mediocre and non-​effective.
My experience has shown they match mentors as adult babysitters instead of with kids who are actually in need. If you you want to be matched as a mentor I recommend Hour Children or some other organization that gets their hands dirty with kids– BBBS doesn’t seem to.
Maybe other branches of BigBrother are less frustrating, but the NYC branch has incompetent staff mixed with illogical premises and procedures. For instance, they don’t want you to hug a child, instead they want you to do some crazy «jazz hands» dance in front of the child displaying enthusiasm. This is great for a company who wants to protect image, but it does NOTHING for an actual child who may not get hugs at home. Mentor-​ship is developing a bond, underneath a bond is showing that you care (which could mean a hug). BigBrother of NYC is more about being politically correct than being authentically purposeful.
Here are frustrations I found:
* The people on the front line seem to have little experience with needy kids; they are more cheerleaders. If they do have experience, well why are kids who need a babysitter being matched instead of kids who actually need mature development?
* The training was bad. I forgot the trainers name (Jewish curly haired girl, very loud), but she totally gave irrelevant and incorrect advice on a few scenarios and one time was asked directly about a possible situation, she got frazzled and said, «This is not the place to suggest such behavior from a mentee» in response to a scenario in which a mentee might ask a mentor about drugs (which would happen). The trainer got very disconnected which left us all feeling awkward.
* Every step of the way with Big Brother feels like joining a gym membership instead of actually becoming part of someone’s life. It’s all paperwork and powerpoint slides as opposed to what it might feel like to make a difference in someone’s life.
* 5 «Bigs» or mentors that I know have pulled out of the organization because time spent was more babysitting than actual growth with a child. How are they matching these kids?
* Several people I know have been denied as a «Big» because of past arrests or addiction. That’s the biggest problem I have. As a man in Recovery the reason I DO give back so much now is because of how I changed my life through quitting drugs and alcohol. Big Brother is going to penalize people for becoming better people through mistakes and wanting to give back? Stop looking at someone’s past, see them for who they are now! Shame on them.
I have a mentee through Hour Children which is an amazing organization that helps incarcerated families. You really can do and make a difference. I suggest checking that out if you want to give your time to someone in need (or one of the many other organizations), but I found Big Brother Big Sister to be more about the image than the product.
My post is simply my truth. I have no ill-​will, but I am passionate about helping, so I’m also passionate about my opinions and being a voice of reason. Big Brother Big Sister of NYC can do a better job, simple as that. This branch fails at the execution… from what I’ve seen, others might have a great experience, but this is my honesty…

There are so many great reasons to be a Big. However to become a Big is a long process. I applied in late December, went to a introduction to the application/​interview process, then went to an interview in February. And I didn’t get matched until early April. I’m incredibly glad I did it. I love being a Big. The staff is incredibly helpful and supportive and always checking in.
I also love that there are so many great committees to get involved in such as the Young Professionals Committee and the half-​marathon/​marathon teams. They also put on a lot of great events for Bigs as a thank you.

I’m a big in the workplace-​based mentoring program and I think its awesome and encourage everyone to get involved in BBBS in anyway they can. I got started with the program late in the school year and our group of littles are graduating this month so I’m very excited for this fall when we will get younger littles.
My office has programs for 2 hours on a Monday afternoon, twice a month. That’s not much time out of your busy schedules!
Children aren’t given a choice of what family they are brought into, what home life they have, where they live, etc. Helping children in general is rewarding, but I can’t think of anything more special than when you are helping children who are possibly less fortunate and have a chance to make a difference in their life. You can give them the chance to meet the right people and guide them in the right direction so that when it comes time for them to make their own choices they’ll know which are the right ones to make. They’ll keep themselves in school, stay away from the wrong crowds, continue on to college, get a job, keep their values and self respect and grow into someone that they deserve to become.

I just signed up for this via the Heart Gallery NYC’s affiliation with them. The fact that you can help out a foster child is very touching and makes a huge difference in someone else’s life. It’s bad enough that these foster children have no sense of permanancy and get booted out of the program once they reach adulthood. It’s important for us to help raise awareness and find adoption families for these children.
Commitment is 8hrs/​month for 1year. You go through an extensive 1.45hr interview process as well as 3 reference checks (yes, they actually call and are very thorough). GET OFF YOUR LAZY ARSE AND HELP CHANGE SOMEONE’S LIFE!

Becoming a Big is a great thing — you get to connect with and really help some kids who really need the help.
I’m in the school-​based mentoring program, meaning that we meet with our Little once a week for lunch in a group with the other Bigs assigned to the same school. (Did that make sense?) Anyways, there are some activities, but the primary focus is really just on connecting weekly with your Little.
There’s a huge shortage of guys for the program, so if you’re a guy considering volunteering, this is a great way to do it. A lot of the boys in the program are good kids who just don’t have the kind of adult attention and role model they need — kids in foster homes, or with parents who might as well not be there, often in schools that are too crowded to spend the time needed to make up for the lack of a strong father figure at home. All they need is a little attention and a positive influence to start making some progress. I’ve been paired up with my Little Brother for a year now and it took time for him to warm up, but he’s started applying himself in school, doing most of his homework, and turning things around. There’s still a long way to go, but knowing you can make a difference with just a commitment of around 4 hours a month is a great feeling. (Also, since it’s during the day, if you can manage to get a long lunch break once a week at work it won’t even get in the way of the rest of your life, for those of you with full schedules.)
Go join already!

I’m sure you all know what Big Brothers Big Sisters is — you get assigned a child or teen who you’ll spend 8 hours a month with. I thought it would be good for all you Unilocalers to hear a bit more about the process. First, you’ll take an «orientation» online and submit an application. (
). Next you’ll get called in for an interview. Be prepared for them to ask you EVERYTHING. For example: «When was your first sexual experience? Was it positive?» If you make it past the interview stage and the security clearance (finger prints, check references, criminal background check, etc) you will go to a training where you’ll learn about the ins and outs of being a Big Sibling. Then they’ll try to find a match for you. There are more female volunteers than girls in the program, so there may be a long wait if you are a girl. (There is a major shortage of male volunteers however — they aren’t even accepting applications for little brothers.) Then, if the caseworker and parents agree, you’ll meet your new little sibling and become a mentor. It’s worth a shot!