I was asked to write a note about my recent experience as a volunteer.
Last winter I became a Big Brother in the Alliston area.
I had seen the sign on the hill outside of Cookstown for many years and
always thought that was a noble cause.

During my marriage, I never found the time or motivation to make the phone call to BBBS.
Last year my marriage broke down and I found myself needing to belong to something with purpose.
We never had children of our own and I decided that this would be good for me.
I was purely thinking of myself and considered the benefit to the young boy would be just a bonus.
This was something I felt I needed after turning 40 and not having any children of my own.

After meeting will Kelly, the case worker I realized that there was a great
need for these volunteers and that the BBBS organization was very appreciative of my efforts.
I felt some stress and fear that maybe I might not enjoy the experience or fail as a volunteer.
After all, I was about to meet another person who would have expectations of me and perhaps
have had a life full of disappointments.

Soon after meeting with my little brother, it was apparent that this was not the case.
He was a well rounded little boy who came from a loving, caring family who
didn't experience much disappointment at all in his early life.

Soon into our relationship, i realized all he wanted from me was to spend
time together doing anything I enjoyed doing.We would play catch, hit golf balls,
play soccer, fish, bowl, hike and picnic or walk around Home Depot with me.

Last night I went to see him sing in his school Christmas Concert.
I was shown off  to his teacher, friends and their parents like a new puppy.
When the night was over he gave me a present, a mouse pad with our picture
on it from his birthday party. He gave me a big hug and told me to have nice Christmas and if I wasn't
doing anything to come over for Christmas. He wanted to make sure I wasn't alone at Christmas
knowing that I had no kids or wife this year.

In the end, it has been as great an experience for me as I am sure it is for him, probably better.
Although everyone has their one reasons to volunteer, in the end you never
know what the joy will be until it happens. All I can say is, it is a great feeling today.

Thanks Scott and Merry Christmas. Darryl

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