Letter to the Editor: Volunteering is great way to finish graduation requirements

As the spring semester has arrived, most seniors are finishing up their last minute requirements that will allow them to graduate. One of the requirements that many seniors choose to do is Community Service Learning. When it comes to volunteering, there are a variety of options to choose from in the Fredericksburg area, whether it be working a few hours at the Food Bank, or visiting a nursery home. Either way, volunteering is a great way to reach out to the community and to those that need our help. One organization in particular that seems to fit easily with busy college-students’ schedules is the Big Brothers Big Sisters in-schools program.

The “Bigs in Schools” pairs students up with a “little” based on a few interviews that takes into account both the big and the littles hobbies and personality traits to ensure an accurate match is met. After the initial match, the bigs visit their little’s once a week at their school for an hour of after-school homework help and games. An hour may not seem like a lot, but for these children it means the world. Having a big, or in other words a “role model,” enables the children to have a sense of stability in their life and a support system that they can trust and look up to. Sometimes college students can find it hard to fit volunteering into an already busy schedule, but taking one hour out of your week to spend with a child that looks forward to your visit every day can make it worth it.

The Big Brothers Big Sisters organization is always looking for new applicants for the Big positions, so for more information you can contact Cynthia Osband at cynthiaosband@rbbbs.org.

Sophie Perkins is a senior at the University of Mary Washington and a volunteer with the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.