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Building Bonds Between Mentors and Kids with Incarcerated Parents
By Meghan Mandeville, News Research Reporter
Published: 12/01/2003

For the past three months, Terence Johns has been taking a step back from his busy life as a father and a Harvard University police officer.  He's been bowling, he's been to the batting cages and he's been to an auto show.  All the while, he's had his little brother by his side.

Johns was one of the first mentors to be recruited by Big Brothers of Massachusetts Bay for the Amachi program, a joint effort by Big Brothers and Big Sisters to match children who have incarcerated parents with volunteer mentors from the Boston religious community.

"It didn't appear to be a program that involved a great deal of effort or change of [lifestyle]," said Johns, who first learned about the program during a presentation at his local church.  "It appeared to touch a part of our society that is easily influenced and needs to be [positively] affected."

The Amachi program began in Massachusetts this year, with Boston being one of 12 pilot sites across the country.  Three years ago, the program originated in Philadelphia under the leadership of Reverend Wilson Goode, whose own father was incarcerated when he was 12 years old.  There, it met with much success and other places decided to replicate it.

"The experience in Philadelphia was so successful that our national organization and Rev. Goode wanted then to carry that success to other cities," said John Pearson, President and CEO of Big Brothers of Massachusetts Bay.  "Boston was chosen because of the strength of the Big Brothers organization here and the size of the faith-based community."

Getting Amachi Going

According to Pearson, there are several factors that have been critical in getting the program off the ground in Boston.

Finding At-Risk Youth

First, Big Brothers, with the cooperation of Big Sisters, has tried to identify at-risk children who would qualify to participate in the program, Pearson said.

"[Children] don't walk around communities saying my parent is in jail," Pearson said.  "Sometimes incarcerated people don't want [their children's] caretakers to know," he added.  "It becomes a complicated piece."

So, to find children whose parents are incarcerated, the organization has headed directly into Massachusetts correctional facilities to talk with parents about the children that they have left behind.

There, at the jails and prisons, Big Brothers describes the Amachi program to the inmates and hands out applications or interest forms that they can fill out with information about their children and how to contact them, Pearson said.

Although the program targets children ages 7 to 15, Big Brothers will attempt to match children as old as 19 years with mentors.

"If a parent is concerned about their children, they are concerned about all of their children [regardless of age]," Pearson said.  "[After a parent has expressed interest in the program], the next step is for us to contact the caretakers and get their cooperation."

Recruiting Volunteers

Aside from locating children who have incarcerated parents, Big Brothers must also recruit volunteer-mentors, like Johns, to make the Amachi program work.

Because the majority of children with incarcerated parents live in urban areas, Big Brothers turned to religious organizations, which are also heavily concentrated in the inner-city, to find volunteers, according to Pearson.

"There's a natural affinity or affiliation [between a program like Amachi and religious organizations]," said Pearson.  "We have a program with the churches where we ask [them] to form partnerships with us."

As part of these partnerships, Big Brothers provides a stipend to members of congregations to actively recruit mentors, noted Pearson.

To increase awareness of the Amachi program, Big Brothers has also sent out over 300,000 pieces of direct mail and made public service announcements, said Pearson.

Agency Support

Once the organization recruits volunteers, another important piece of the program is providing mentors with support from the agency, according to Pearson.

"We are there in support of [the child and mentor's] relationship every step of the way," Pearson said, noting that Big Brothers checks in with both parties at least once a month.

Also, Big Brothers gives mentors advice about how to handle their relationships with the children.

"One of the things we advise the volunteers not to do is bring up [the subject of] the parent being in jail," Pearson said.  "When the children are ready, they'll tell [their mentors]."

Leading by Example

While Johns and his little brother may not discuss his incarcerated parent often, the two do make sure to have some fun.

"This [program] encourages me to step back and say 'I've got to go do something fun,'" said Johns.  "I've got a little brother and we're having a good time."

Johns hopes that his involvement with his little brother will have a positive impact on the 13-year-old's life.

"I'm going to do things that hopefully will encourage him because I want him to be better," Johns said.  "I'm trying to do this so as he grows up maybe he'll become a big brother to someone and he'll have an example to follow."

Providing young people who have incarcerated parents with a good example to follow is the ultimate goal of the program, explains Pearson, who notes that children with incarcerated parents have an increased chance of ending up incarcerated themselves.

"If your parent is incarcerated, your chances are seven times greater than the average child of [becoming incarcerated]," Pearson said.  "That's why the Amachi program is so important."

Resources

To learn more about the Amachi program or becoming a Big Brother, contact Big Brothers of Massachusetts Bay at (617) 956-0281

To learn more about becoming a Big Sister, contact Big Sister Association of Greater Boston at (617) 236-8060

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