Meet one of our Bigs! Sherry is a medical coder by profession, but she loves to spend time hiking and reading when she gets the chance. Spending time with family and her fur babies is important to Sherry, and it's one of her favorite things to do! Those closest to Sherry describe her as funny, thoughtful, reliable and kind.
Sherry has been matched with her Little Sister Kathleen for 7.5 years! Out of all of the volunteer opportunities available in the Evansville area, she says that it was being able to spend time with a child a few times a month that drew her to the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.
As you can imagine, Sherry and Kathleen have been on some amazing adventures together. They've played laser tag, gone to the Children's Museum of Evansville, watched a marching band compete, gone roller skating, enjoyed the West Side Nut Club Fall Festival, and eaten out at local restaurants, just to name a few. But Sherry's all time favorite activity is their yearly excursion to Holiday World Splashin Safari. Kathleen loves to ride all the rides, including the roller coasters and they always have a great time together! They've even developed some really cool traditions along the way, too, like singing in the car!
They've weathered quite a few changes over the last several years. They've remained connected through changes in school, work, health, home life AND a global pandemic! Sherry says that Kathleen has opened up so much more since they were first matched. Kathleen always has wonderful things to say about her Big Sister, and often says that she just doesn't know what she'd do without Sherry in her life. For Sherry, knowing that she's exposing Kathleen to new opportunities and knowing how happy Kathleen is on their outings keeps her motivated. But the hardest part is knowing that she's unable to fix everything for her Little Sister.
Sherry has this to say about her time volunteering, "I've had some moments with Kathleen that just brightened my day and made me tear up. When I know that spending time with me affects Kathleen in such a positive way, it really makes me feel grateful for our connection."
For anyone considering a match and recently matched volunteers, Sherry wants you to know that," A connection might take more time than you think so you need to be patient".
If you are interested in becoming a Big Sister Like Sherry visit mentoringkids.org
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