The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

c30 eodnbjristsunjtribulie november 11 1987 heres how big brothers works when esther turned to the big brothers associa tion of york last year for her son she was quite apprehensive the markham resident wanted to know the type of people who would be involved with 10yearold paul martha lloydsmith a counsellor for big brothers visited esther and reassured her speak ing of the screening process that volunteers are put through pauls father had died one year before and i had to drag him to school he was having difficulty adjusting and needed someone special for him self that special person turned out to be mike shasky 25 now pauls big brother he had volunteered his time last summer that october he met paul when i called they asked me a few questions and then i was sent some pamphlets and release forms for a police check and medical informa tion he remembers with this the markham businessman submitted three character witnesses who were subsequently contacted later an interview was arranged at shaskys home according to laurie leblanc of big brothers of york this is where the real interview takes place we are trying to find out how stable the man is we will want to meet with his parents or wife and find out the family background of the volun teer his interests and personality and his moral attitude when shasky finished the screening process which is completed by only one in each two appli cants he was shown the information on several boys from there he decided to meet paul esther requested that she meet with her sons potential big brother beforehand the night after they spoke shasky met paul at this point the volunteer and the boy each have the choice of finding another brother but both decided the pairing was right the association asks that volunteers are able to give at least four hours per week for two years this is to try to maintain a sense of stability in a boys life shaskys main role is as a friend its as close as a fatherson relationship but i dont discipline him he says i take paul away from the house and we do things together shopping hiking and model building are among the activities the two enjoy as well as fishing der bies and car rallies planned by the association its exciting because youre doing something good and he really appreciates it shasky says weve become quite close pauls affection for his brother is not masked as he explains im not bored anymore its some thing to look forward to a year later esther marvels at the change in her son we have not had any problems since then paul is much better mike is an exceptional person but leblanc emphasizes thatmike is not an un usual person his experiences would probably be applicable to most of the volunteers still shasky says there arent enough big brothers and anyone who has thought about it should go ahead the screening process says leblanc is quite flexible we want the best for the boys and we ask our counsellors to consider these people as though they would be spending time with the counsellors own son she says interested volunteers can call big brothers of york at 7736168 the big brother of york region wish to thank the following community minded sponsors for their continued support be a big brother brkfle trail pharmacy i hacy holdings i imitfo delivery service mpsupporr big brothers 481 uraonvsle bypass unionville on l3r 5h7 155 yonge st n newmarket ont l3y 7c1 416 4777734 416 8984700 scot ksbank the bank of nova scotia 101mainstn markham ont l3p3j5 2943113 markville toyota 29w100 new 1988 corollas now on display 222 wellington st iv markham the mayor and council of markham extend their best wishes to the big brothers of york e conomist sim 2942200 2944331 stwffvule stockyards ltd home of the big flea maiket open sat sun al year round hwy47stame 6403813 are your clothes becoming to you or should they be coming to us djb markham cleaners wu 99 wellington street west markham m greenbelt m m motors w chevolds 2941440 across from zipp drugs 2942353 keep up we good work big br0webs working together for a better tomorrow 7997 kenndy rd unionville ont l3r2e2 4772421 unionville big v drug store 4771hwr7e iga plan omonville ont 8ig v pharmacies co limited store hours monfri 99 sat 97 sun 115 nn guss auto service unionville k1kknum 4794044 open 7 days a week 4773405 4496 hwy 7 east at main st guardian mats my drugstore markham pharmacy corner main robinson 2940444 gord turney bscphm