As a student at the University of Delaware in the early 1980s, Renna Van Oot drove to the nearby offices of Big Brothers Big Sisters.
“I thought, Gosh, I’m the youngest in the family. I’ve always wanted a little sister and I never had one,” she said. “It just seemed like a really neat way to volunteer.”
But then she froze in the parking lot. Van Oot is a lesbian. She wondered if staffers at Big Brothers Big Sisters would ask her about it, and if they would feel comfortable having her work with children.
“I hemmed and I hawed and I drove away,” Van Oot said. “I never went into the building. I think that perception — even though that was that many years ago — hasn’t changed a whole lot. I think most of us in the gay and lesbian community still have that little thing inside of us that’s like, They’re not going to want us.”
Leaders at Big Brothers Big Sisters Independence Region, which covers Southeastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey, hope to change that in a big way with a new strategic plan that will include specific outreach to LGBT adult mentors and young kids, in addition to a fundraiser this month in the Gayborhood.
Big Brothers Big Sisters Independence Region has had an LGBT CEO in the past.
Van Oot now works as chief operating officer for the Independence Region. New mentors like Clinton Drees, an openly gay man who has been a Big Brother in Philadelphia and Delaware, consider her a mentor.
Drees is the Big Brothers Big Sisters representative behind the fundraiser set for Sept. 21 from 6-8 p.m. at Boxers, 1330 Walnut St. It’s part of a staff challenge to raise $35,000 to cover background checks and other staff expenses incurred when matching a mentor to a mentee. Drees started three months ago as a community-based match support specialist with the organization.
The eight employee teams have raised just over $24,000 so far, Drees said, adding Boxers plans to donate 20 percent of its proceeds during the fundraiser. There will be a raffle, and guest bartenders will also collect tips for Big Brothers Big Sisters.
“This will be the first time they reached out to the gay community for volunteers,” said Jay Nieves, assistant manager at Boxers. “At first, they were a little shy. But lately they’re realizing the parents are more than OK with it.”
Nieves invited his friends from Stonewall Sports, an LGBT organization that arranges games of kickball and dodgeball among other things, to the event. He wanted them to hear about the work done by Big Brothers Big Sisters.
“With Stonewall Sports, there are a lot of young people who are looking to volunteer and want a way to get started,” he said.
Marcus Allen, CEO of the Independence Region, said 68 percent of the Bigs in the area are Millennials, and he’d like to see that increase to 75 percent. He said Big Brothers Big Sisters has a huge need for mentors in West Philadelphia, North Philadelphia and the Lower Northeast, especially for those to work with African-American boys.
Allen said African-American boys make up about 65 percent of the region’s waiting list, and they wait nearly twice as long for a mentor versus other kids.
Van Oot said culling more volunteers from the LGBT community could help alleviate those needs.
“There’s a whole group of volunteers there that are ready, willing, able and interested,” she said. “We need to reach out to them and let them know that they are wanted and that their volunteer service is needed.”
Drees said the matching process is based on personality. He and his Little Brother, who have worked together for over a year in Philadelphia, have gone to Wizard World Comic Con in the city and spend time making drawings together.
“My Little had an instance in school where he was being bullied,” Drees added. “Being able to talk through it with him was very meaningful for me. In some ways, it helped me. I was bullied in school for being too sensitive and being friends with girls. Being able to help him is really affirming for me.”
Van Oot is part of a committee of internal and external stakeholders that is evaluating how to better work with LGBT adults and kids. There may be opportunities for LGBT kids or those who are questioning their identities to request mentors with similar experiences.
At Big Brothers Big Sisters of Delaware, officials worked with local school districts to place mentors in their GSA programs to work with the staff and kids. Out of that, some kids requested one-on-one mentors. Van Oot said that’s a model they’re exploring for the Independence Region.
Allen said his staffers have met with officials from The Attic Youth Center. He said Big Brothers Big Sisters currently employs a rule that Littles must match with a Big of the same gender. The committee is reviewing how best to ensure transgender inclusion in the process.
Allen said he would like some LGBT programming to begin by the end of next year. A former board member has been in talks with the Independence Region to fund an initiative for LGBT participants.
“The things that stop nonprofits many times, or delay them from doing things, we don’t have those obstacles,” Allen said. “We’ve got the money, we’ve got the people, we’ve got the partners, we’ve got the motivation and momentum.”