Find out how mentoring has ‘enriched’ the life of a Collingwood woman
When Lorretta Lavell and her husband retired to Collingwood five years ago, they didn’t want to just enjoy the scenery.
“We wanted to become integrated in the community,” she said.
Lavell said she and Phil, who have been married 50 years, wanted to help young people and were always interested in mentoring youth.
They thought about coaching some local teams but at the urging of former Big Brothers Big Sisters executive director Jarvis Strong, they decided to become mentors with the organization.
Stouffville didn’t have a Big Brothers Big Sisters chapter but they were always interested in volunteering.
“We knew it had an excellent reputation,” she said.
They became a mentor to Matthew, now 14, nearly four years ago and Loretta said he has had an impact on them.
“Our lives have been enriched by the experience,” she said. “Our new friends and neighbours, they see it.”
She said they do a number of activities together and with the couple having a grandson the same age, Matthew has become part of the family.
“We feel like we’re family,” she said. “We’re in a really privileged position here.”
She said they’ve taken the boys to Lego land and on trips, Phil enjoys driving around with Matthew in his 1940 Ford or spending time in the kitchen.
“Phil is a really good cook, he’s teaching Matthew how to cook,” she said.
In addition to mentoring, Loretta is one of four individuals who organized the Blue Moon Mid Summer Eve Party in support of Big Brothers Big Sisters.
The fourth annual event takes place on Aug. 3 and raised $67,000 last year.
“For me Big Brothers Big Sisters is a passion,” she said.
“We see the good that it’s done in young lives.”