Program fills gap in pairing youngsters with role models

Kyra Jackson was curled up on the sofa watching TV when Twyla Odume appeared at the door of Kyra's apartment last Friday.

"Ready to go?" Odume said.

Kyra jumped up, slipped on pink flip flops, and the two were out the door for an afternoon of walking the dog and going to the beach.

The 6-year-old girl and the 24-year-old woman could almost be sisters.

They're both tall and slim, their hair pulled back elegantly from their faces.

The two have been paired through a mentoring program called Team Up. Run by The Up Center in Norfolk, the program sprang into action after a local chapter of Big Brothers Big Sisters shut down in January because of financial shortfalls.

The Up Center took over coordination of about 10 Big Brothers Big Sisters matches and added 10 new ones. The organization's goal is to have 75 pairs by next year.

Kyra and Odume are among the newest matches. This was their second meeting.

Odume introduced Kyra to her dog, Kobe, and the two of them walked him around Kyra's Virginia Beach apartment complex. Kyra shyly shared she'd like a dog of her own.

"Do you like big dogs or little ones?"

"Little ones."

"Like a Chihuahua or a fluffy one?"

"Fluffy."

Odume talked about some college classes she's taking, and Kyra about a birthday party she's invited to, while Kobe bounded up ahead of them.

Odume can vouch for the value of the program, since she was a little sister in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program as a teenager. She lived in Costa Mesa, Calif., at the time, and her mentor worked in the corporate office of an amusement park.

Besides taking her on fun outings, her mentor introduced her to a corporate working environment, a side of life Odume had never known.

Odume later enlisted in the Navy, and now manages computer systems. When she moved to Virginia Beach in 2004, she decided to volunteer for the program as a big sister herself. She was paired five years ago with Keaira Reese, who is now 9.

Odume coached a cheerleading team at a Boys and Girls Club in Norfolk that Keaira attends. They also go out for lunch, to museums and just hang out together. "She's like a little sister to me. It's a relief to spend time with her, an outlet. I'm like a really big kid."

Odume decided to stay with the program when Team Up took over, and she volunteered to mentor a second girl, Kyra.

Mary Midyette, who supervises the Team Up mentorship program, said many of the matches made by the Big Brothers Big Sisters organization were solid enough that they didn't need any coordination.

Some of the mentors who did transfer to Team Up have started new relationships under the program.

Fifty youngsters are still on the waiting list, however. A few dozen new mentors are going through the sign-up process, which includes four background screens, reference checks and an interview.

There are more boys in need of matches, and fewer male mentors than female.

"We want to take the time to make good matches, not just increase our numbers," Mid-yette said.

Most of the youngsters live in single-parent homes.

One evening in August, 11-year-old Langston Scott helped Bruce LaLonde put away groceries at LaLonde's Portsmouth home.

Langston set the table while LaLonde whipped up chicken-salad sandwiches and beef stew.

The two of them discussed their past basketball feats over supper, with Langston teasing LaLonde about how old he is.

"Next year you'll have a cane," Langston said.

"If I have a cane," LaLonde said, "... you'll need a wheelchair because I'll still be whupping you at basketball."

Langston has a couple of brothers, but neither shares the same house in Portsmouth with him and his mother, or even the same state.

Langston considers LaLonde, who's retired from the Navy, a brother of sorts, too, with an important difference.

"I get to see him," Langston said.

They're a couple of decades in age apart, but that's OK, because they both live in Portsmouth and enjoy baseball games, car races and shooting hoops. They also like just hanging out together.

That may be what they like best.

LaLonde, who runs an information technology company, hooked up with Big Brothers Big Sisters several years ago and mentored an 11-year-old boy, with whom he still spends time.

He met Langston after joining Team Up. Since then, he's also been matched with another boy, 12-year-old Harry Dews.

For LaLonde, mentoring isn't just about a schedule full of outings. He invites the boys over for dinner. They go grocery shopping together. They pick pears from a tree in his backyard and take them to neighbors. They do chores around the house and just hang out together.

"It's not about play time," LaLonde said. "It's about life."

Sean Murray of Portsmouth is also a Team Up mentor. The 26-year-old U.S. Coast Guard lieutenant was paired with 10-year-old Hunter Belwood about a year and a half ago through Big Brothers Big Sisters.

They switched to Team Up earlier this year. They play ball in a park near Hunter's home, go swimming and play video games together.

Midyette said mentors often say their best-spent time is just hanging out together, rather than going special places.

The mentors grow to count on the relationship as much as the youngsters they're paired with.

"When you first give of yourself, you don't always realize how much you'll get back," Midyette said. "But it changes and enhances their lives, too."

Elizabeth Simpson, (757) 446-2635, elizabeth.simpson@pilotonline.com