When I first started playing Dungeons and Dragons in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, I thought of it as a fun way to reconnect with friends during a period of extreme isolation. Four years later, I never would’ve expected…
Big Brothers Big Sisters of WNC
Project MARS member: Showing up is often enough, even when challenged
Before I started a service term with Project MARS, I’d had lots of experience working with younger children. Mentoring, and academically supporting middle schoolers made me a little nervous. After Hurricane Helene, it was expected that students would show up…
Discovering how an autistic child wants to be taught reaps rewards
“In my school there is a third-grade student on the autism spectrum who has difficulty staying focused in class. He gets easily upset when others try to give him instruction or assistance, and it has been challenging to communicate with…
Project MARS brings compassion, busy hands post-Helene
Project MARS members serve in schools in several of our mountain counties, and they doubled down after Hurricane Helene. Though school was suspended, members served during recovery efforts, handing out supplies, sorting donated clothes, and doing other much-appreciated tasks. Big…
Once winds died down, BBBS fanned out into community
As soon as the skies cleared after Hurricane Helene, we were organizing to help our Littles and their families in our devastated mountain counties. In the past few days, we’ve shifted from delivering food, water and other supplies to passing…
