Big Brothers and Big Sisters of West Island
April 11, 2005
By Nicole Zummach
KIRKLAND, QC // "I still believe it takes a village to raise a
child," says Gloria Coulter, director of Big Brothers
and Big Sisters of West Island. Undoubtedly, this attitude serves
the organization well, considering that its primary goal is to provide
young people with mentors. Although it has been part of the community
on the Island of Montreal for years, BBBS of West Island has experienced
considerable success in recent years with its In-School Mentoring program.
It was the first Big Brothers Big Sisters in Quebec to adopt the national
initiative. Last year, the organization marked another first when it
became the first nonprofit in the province to ever receive a Donner
Canadian Foundation Award. CharityVillage spoke with Coulter about
the organization's commitment to young people, the benefits and challenges
of being part of a national organization, and the impact of receiving
the Donner award for Alternative Education.
CharityVillage: You won the Donner Award for Alternative Education. What component of your programming were they looking at?
Gloria Coulter: It was for our Elementary In-School Mentoring
program, where we mentor children from kindergarten to grade four. The
schools choose the children - usually those who have problems intermingling
and making friends, those who have problems at home, and those who have
low self-confidence and self-esteem. Then we match volunteers with children
who have similar interests. It helps the children with their education
and encourages them, but it's also a friendship and that friendship
grows. Mentors spend one hour a week with their child throughout the
school year. It's amazing to see how such a short amount of time spent
with a child can be so effective. We started the program five and a
half years ago in one school and we are now in 28 schools.
We all enjoy working here and I feel we are very fortunate. I get up every morning looking forward to going to work because of what we do and the difference that we're making. I've been here for eleven years and I've seen children who were eight and nine when I started who are now young adults. To see the difference in the these children, just having that special friend in their lives and what it can do for a child makes everything worthwhile.
CV: What innovations have you incorporated into your programming?
GC: One example is our child safety program, which we must give
to any child who is served by our organization. It's an awareness program
covering sexual abuse, street smarts, bullying. etc. We have been called
back to many of the schools to deliver this program to all of their
students because there are very few schools within our province that
are offering this type of education.
CV: What would you say makes you stand apart from other organizations
delivering educational programs. What is the key to your success?
GC: Well, I think number one is that we have the most up-to-date
and most effective screening system, where children are concerned. Here
in Quebec, our agency has helped other volunteer agencies to initiate
a screening process for their volunteers. We've helped them get all
the necessities in place. We are the largest BBBS agency in Quebec.
We are considered a small agency (five staff) with big numbers. We serve
a large population; we are very well known in our community and are
held in high regard. That has grown because of our Elementary In-School
Mentoring program.
CV: How does being part of a large and very recognizable organization assist you with your effectiveness at the local level?
GC: Our national office has the availability and the networking
ability to do things across Canada. So where our programs and surveys
and that kind of thing are concerned, they are able to bring in people
from different fields of expertise and all walks of life to help us
grow.
CV: Are there challenges associated with being part of a large organization?
GC: Always, because we have all sizes of agencies and whatever
is put in place we all have to try and grow with it. We have been challenged
to increase the number of children we serve by 2013, which will be our
100th anniversary. That, too, is a challenge because to grow requires
more financial support, more staff, and most specifically, more volunteers.
Recruiting is one of the major obstacles that we have to overcome. But
when you are talking about children and you know that you are making
a difference in the life of a child, that helps us to recruit.
CV: Do you think that being the first agency in Quebec to win a Donner award will have some impact?
GC: We hope so. As the first agency to win in Quebec, we'll be using that to try and grow. It certainly can't hurt!
For more information about Big Brothers and Big Sisters of West Island,
visit: www.bbbsofwi.org.
To learn more about the Donner Awards, visit: www.fraserinstitute.ca/donner/index.asp.
