The more positive influences you have in your life,
the better chance you have to succeed!
Does having a positive adult role model in your life really make a difference? I would answer this question with a resounding YES! My name is Christine. I am a wife, mother of 4 beautiful children, have a career with the school board, am a Miss Fitness Ontario champion, and I am a former Little Sister. Without the mentoring programs and hardworking staff at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Windsor Essex, I truly believe that I would not have the life I do today. My Big Sister changed my life forever.
Growing up in Windsor Housing, I was surrounded by many bad influences. I grew up in a single parent household with my sister and a loving mother who had special needs. My mother was a wonderful, caring woman, but with her basic developmental level, I had no one to turn to for advice or guidance. She knew I had goals, and knew that I needed the life skills and tools to reach them. Thankfully, she took advantage of all of the programs that were available to children who face adversity like Big Brothers Big Sisters.
As a 12 year old girl in 1986, I had no idea what to expect when I met Georgette at the Big Sisters office to bake cookies. Although the oven didn’t work and we had to go to Wendy’s instead, we had an instant connection – one that has lasted for 26 years.
Georgette had two daughters of her own who were younger than me. Her huge heart and passion for helping others in need lead her to become a Big Sister. Through Georgette and her family, I was exposed to many new experiences and opportunities. Seeing these new possibilities first hand changed my life. I never knew what my true potential was until I had someone to guide me, and show me how to reach for my goals.
Georgette was an amazing role model, not just to me, but for my mother as well. They worked together as a team to put me on the right path.
Throughout the last 26 years, Georgette and her family have been by my side through all of my life’s ups and downs. We have become a family. They shared in the happiness of my wedding, the birth and growth of my 4 children, and were there for me through the heart break of my mother’s passing. I will always consider Georgette as my mentor and a great friend. I still rely on her wisdom to help guide me. We see each other regularly, spend holidays and special occasions together, and she is a grandmother figure to my children.
I will forever be thankful that Georgette came into my life!
– Christine, Former Little Sister