A 35-year-old man is going to knock down a few pins with his family to help an organization that gave him a little brother.
“We definitely don’t bowl,” said Dan Flynn with a laugh. “But it’s a great opportunity to support a cause that means a lot to our family and a good chance to not only raise some money but also some awareness of some of the good things that program does.”
The Flynns are bowling in the annual Big Brothers Big Sisters Rock and Bowl For Kids Sake at Millennium Lanes in Okotoks on March 24.
Flynn has been a mentor for 17-year-old Tyler, an Okotoks high school student, for the past 3 ½ years through Big Brothers Big Sisters. It was the young man’s perseverance that drew the two together.
“I was surprised a kid at that age needed support, needed a mentor, unfortunately he had been on the wait-list since he was about eight years old,” Flynn said. “That was the reason, I chose the match, he had shown the commitment to wait and it was heartbreaking to know there were kids waiting that long for a mentor.”
Flynn has become a mentor for Tyler, a guy to hang and talk with – he’s not a replacement for a father.
“What the requirements are is they need a male role model, some structure, some stability in their lives to be a friend – an outlet for them,” Flynn said. “But by no means do I replace his dad or act as a parent. I just hope I can help him act as a man should or at least I can be a friend outside of the high school drama and all of the things that come with being a teenage kid.
“I can be removed from all that and be a person he can trust in his life.”
When they were first matched up, Flynn and Tyler would spend between four to six hours together once a week.
“After the first year, it is scaled back to four to six hours every two weeks,” Flynn said. “We have a relationship now where we might see each other once a week or maybe once every three weeks. We stay in touch, we’re not far away.
“It’s now a more real relationship where we see each other for an event rather than forced scheduled time. I think that means more now.”
The pair is now doing things that fit into each other’s lives – going to the gym, skating, hiking, movies.
Last week it was a special shopping trip.
“We were shopping for his grad suit, that was exciting,” Flynn said. “An honour for me to help him pick it out, and that was something that he trusted in me.”
Although Flynn has given back he has gained a lot more — a friendship, for one.
“Tyler went from being a pretty introverted guy, playing video games a lot of time to holding down a job, having a girlfriend, playing sports,” Flynn said. “That gives me a huge sense of pride to see that he is doing really well on his own.
“The appreciation that comes from him, his mom, I get that feedback and it means so much to me. I also get to set an example to my two boys that if you have the chance to give back, do so.
“That not everybody has what you have.”
Bowl for Kids Sake is one of the biggest fundraisers for the Okotoks Chapter of Big Brothers Big Sisters, said Kristy Packwood, mentoring co-ordinator.
The proceeds help both the traditional mentoring program such as Flynn’s and Tyler’s, as well as the school-based mentoring program.
That program has, for example, Westmount younger students mentored by high school students at nearby Foothills Composite High School.
“Our school-based program is during school time and is either group based or individual based,” Packwood said. “Often as a group they go in the gym for some physical activity and then they spend some time working through leaderships skills curriculum.”
As well, members of the Okotoks Oilers drop by to provide mentorship.
“The kids are in awe to have a local sports celebrity to spend time with just them,” she said.
Big Brothers Big Sisters also has women-girl mentorships, and right now the Okotoks chapter is in a unique position of needing girls to be mentored.
The Rock and Bowl goes in two sessions on March 24 at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. Teams consists of four players. Each team is asked to raise $400. For more information go to bbbscalgary.ca/okotoksbowl/
