Fatherless Day 2009.

Our first every public appeal for donations. We were a little uncertain about the whole idea of reaching out to the wider public but the the help of our creative freinds from The Pond we came up with a straight to the heart campaign centered around this image.

 
Not every boy has a dad. But every boy needs a good male role
model to become a good man.
At Big Buddy we provide fully screened mentors who commit to spending 2-3 hours a weekwith a Little Buddy (aged 7-12) for at least a year or longer.
This Father’s Day, for the first time in our history, we’re making a call for donations. Help us give boys the regular father figure they need

Our Press release captures the ideals of the appeal

Media Release27 August 2009 Big Buddy ‘Fatherless Day’ 

Big Buddy, the charitable organisation that matches volunteer male mentors to fatherless boys, launches its first-ever fundraising appeal on Father’s Day, Sunday 6 September 2009. 
For thousands of New Zealand boys, Father’s Day is not a celebration – it’s just another reminder that they have no father in their lives.
This is more than simply sad – boys who grow up without fathers are at greater risk of developing behavioural disorders, abusing drink and drugs, attempting suicide, and committing crimes. “Boys need good male role models in their lives to become good men,” says Big Buddy Chief Executive Richard Aston. “At Big Buddy, we have nothing but admiration for solo mothers who courageously tackle the tough job of raising boys on their own – but they cannot model maleness. And above all else, boys learn through modelling.  
“What we do is match fatherless boys with well-screened male mentors who can foster a relationship similar to that of, say, an uncle.”  “We currently provide mentors for more than 140 fatherless boys in Auckland and Wellington but we know there are thousands more boys throughout New Zealand who are growing up without the guiding hand of a good man.
That’s why this Father’s Day, after over a decade of operation, we’re launching our first-ever public funding appeal.” 

Big Buddy recruits and carefully screens men from the community who then commit to spending at least three hours a week with a boy aged 7 to 12 for at least a year. During these sessions, man and boy don’t have to do anything particularly special – just kicking a ball around or going for a walk can be all it takes. The main thing is that the Big Buddy turns up regularly, he listens to his Little Buddy, and they spend quality time together. A regular weekly phone call adds continuity to the relationship. 

The statistics related to boys who grow up fatherless are compelling and heartbreaking. Principal Youth Court Judge Andrew Becroft says that 83% of the youth offenders he sees in his courts are male and 70% come from single parent families.   “Very few serious youth offenders come from stable, two-parent, homes,” says Judge Becroft. “On the other hand, not every solo parent breeds a criminal. Nor am I making judgments about separation. What I’m saying is that most serious young offenders lack a positive male role model.” 

“Matching fatherless boys to good men and supporting their ongoing relationships is a simple and practical response to a real need. It also has profound implications for society as a whole,” says Aston. “The classroom is just one place where boys learn to model maleness. I believe we need to look at a ‘spectrum of fathering’ that can include an extended family member, a neighbour, or a screened volunteer Big Buddy mentor. Someone who can show them what it means to be a good friend, son, brother, partner, and citizen.”