Big Buddy

Big Buddy recruits men from the community to be mentors to fatherless boys.

Screened and supported, these mentors spend about 3hrs/wk with a Little Buddy (aged 7-15) doing ordinary things like exploring, informal sport, fishing, or fixing a car. A weekly phone call adds continuity to the relationship.

Our style of mentoring is purely about relationships. We don’t focus on specific goals or tasks, other than the mentor showing up regularly into a boy’s life. The boys learn what it means to be a man purely by being with a good man.

Big Buddy is based on the simple philosophy that boys need good male role models to become good men. It’s simple yet profound in its reach.

Unfortunately, many boys do not have a father or other male role model. Their mothers do courageous work in raising their boys alone but cannot model maleness.

The programme has run successfully in Auckland since 1997.

The Big Buddy motto is: “One man can’t save the world … but he can make a world of difference to one boys life – one visit at a time.” It’s that simple.