CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Carolinas is all about relationships and giving kids ages 6-18 a little more support, one-on-one mentoring long-term to make a big impact.
"I remember our first get-together," Hane Tarris told WCNC Charlotte. "It was here throwing a football around. The cool thing about Caleb is he’s always been this smart well-mannered polite person who will always ask how you’re doing before you get a chance to ask how he’s doing."
Caleb and Hane were paired together through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Carolinas. Hane is Calebs’s “big” as they say.
"Very authentic and special and I enjoy every second of it," Caleb Scull said. "We talk about a lot of stuff I wouldn’t talk to many people about and he helps me."
"It's one of those things where I want to be there for him to be someone to care about him, talk about things, to be another caring adult is my goal here," Tarris said.
A father of three, Tarris first got involved with the program when he was in college.
"I grew up with not a lot of money but my parents, my family was awesome and as I got older and met awesome people that didn't have the support that I had and I thought something I could do is have a little brother and help any way I can," he said.
That’s exactly what Big Brothers Big Sisters is all about, having served 10,000 kids in the area in the last 50 years. This year alone they’ve worked with 954 at-risk kids in the community and made 273 new matches. The program is a proven success- participants have a higher high school graduation rate, do better in school overall and have better mental health than at-risk kids who are not in the program.
"There are children out there who need a mentor to help navigate life and that’s what this is all about," Caleb said.
His grandparents are raising him after he lost his mom -they thought a mentor would be good for him.
"My mom she was a very special person, I did everything with her, she was like my backbone," he said. "I am learning every day she wouldn’t want me to be sad, she would want me to do what I told her I wanted to do- strive for my dreams and that’s what m trying to do."
With his big brother by his side.
"I can talk about it with him, I feel comfortable talking about it with him he helps me with anything I need and I really appreciate that," Caleb said.
Now 15, Caleb is a sophomore and starting player on the Butler High football team. He and Hane might not have had much in common at the beginning, but the two have grown incredibly close, in the program.
"He’s a person I can count on when I need him and that's just what it is. It should be a lesson for everyone it doesn’t matter [the] race, sexuality, just matters the genuineness between you and that person."
Contact Michelle at mboudin@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.