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Miramichi, New Brunswick
Sheree Allison agrees with the value of collaboration. As the Executive Director of both Big Brothers Big Sisters and Boys and Girls Clubs in Miramichi, New Brunswick (also known as the Youth Village), she has witnessed the ways in which both organizations, and ultimately the children and the community, have profited from this approach. Sheree sums up the benefits of multiple programs working under a common organizational umbrella, “It’s not about giving something up. It’s about giving a lot more to the community and gaining a lot of support and credibility.”Giving to the community by coming together in collaboration seems a way of life in this city whose name means “givers of life” in the Mi’kmaq language. The city is situated on the Miramichi River, and the region is home to 50,000 people. The local inhabitants have always been “given life” by the coming together of the Miramichi River and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. These waterways have sustained the area (despite a 23% unemployment rate) through such industries as fishing, pulp and paper, and tourism. The city itself was “given life” in 1995 by the coming together of five municipalities and several rural areas.
True to their community’s name, Big Brothers Big Sisters and Boys and Girls Club in Miramichi have been “given life” by working together, and in turn give to the lives of local young people. Big Brothers Big Sisters initially existed as a single service, standalone agency. But by 1995, a growing wait list, fundraising challenges and sustainability concerns, caused the organization to look at more effective ways of operating. Upon successfully piloting some group programs for wait list children, the agency realized an opportunity might exist in filling this unmet community need. Seeking guidance for their next steps, they created a task force and held focus groups consisting of program participants, potential supporters, schools, partners, community leaders and other citizens. This process confirmed the need for, and likely feasibility of, group programming. The task force approached the Boys and Girls Club regional and national offices, and was granted affiliation in 1996.
Sheree acknowledges that some board members had reservations about proceeding in this direction. One voice of the board was questioning what they were giving up in creating the Boys and Girls Club. The loud and clear answer was, “Nothing, we must keep the integrity of Big Brothers Big Sisters and find the additional resources needed to add services.” A second voice of the board was advocating for newness and freshness. The response was that the organization must honor its roots and traditions, and beware of unsustainable fads disguised as innovation.
With this wise counsel, the agency decided to retain all Big Brothers Big Sisters programming and add a menu of after school and weekend Boys and Girls Club services. One board was formed to govern both programs. It included veteran Big Brothers Big Sisters board members to retain a sense of tradition, plus new members to bring the fresh vision to life. Part of the fresh vision was to obtain their own building. By increasing the volume and intensity of existing fundraising efforts, the agency’s growth and expansion goals became reality. And in July 1997 the Big Brothers Big Sisters and Boys and Girls Club programs triumphantly opened their new facility, the “Youth Village”.
The programs have continued to be managed not only under a common roof, but also under one charitable number, one corporate registration, and one administration “We have one board, one Executive Director, one menu of services, one location, one face in the community,” Sheree reports. However, they are affiliated with two National organizations, and have three registered names, to take advantage of the Big Brothers Big Sisters, Boys and Girls Club, and Youth Village brands.
Four years after this growth period, the agency began to recognize its expanded capacity. Now they clearly know how many children they can reasonably serve and how much money they can realistically raise. They accept these firm, achievable benchmarks as they plan and deliver their services. By dovetailing the Big Brothers Big Sisters and Boys and Girls Clubs programs, they are consistently right on target.
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