Between work, studying, and preparing for graduation, Deana Draper still finds time to take her little sister out once a week to places like the arcade or the St. Louis Zoo.

Draper does not watch her sister as a favor to her mom, and she does not get paid to watch her.

Draper, a SIUC senior in bioscience from Aurora, is a volunteer for the Big Brother/Big Sister Organization, which celebrates its one year anniversary this month. In the program, volunteers work for one year with a child of a single parent home from Jackson or Perry county.

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The children are between the age of six and12 years old. Volunteers are encouraged to spend a minimum of two to four hours a week with their child.

Draper volunteered in April and was matched with 7-year-old Jessica in August.

I met Jessica at a Big Brother/Big Sister picnic, she said. She ran right up to me and gave me a big hug. She wanted me be her real sister.

Jennifer Shaw, director of the program, said volunteers need to stress that they are not substitute parents but friends.

The premise of the program is one-on-one friendship mentoring, she said. The volunteers go through a training of do’s and don’ts. The volunteers are not babysitters and not Santa Claus. The volunteers are there to encourage the child, not to be an authority figure.

Draper said having the parent explain the role of the Big Brother/Big Sister helps the child understand the situation.

I would never take the place of a mom, she said. I just want to be a friend. Jessica’s mom is great. She explains everything to Jessica.

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Angela Thompson, Jessica’s mother, said she appreciates the time the volunteers spend with the children. She said her older son, Joey, who is also involved in the program, has both a Big Brother and Sister.

The children really enjoy it, she said. They (volunteers) go different places I can’t afford to go.

Shaw said volunteers’ backgrounds are thoroughly screened before they are matched with children.

First, she said the applicants are pre-screened over the telephone. She said they fill out applications and are personally interviewed. The state and local police also perform a background check, she said.

Thompson said the serious background check is one of the strengths of the program.

When I first learned who the volunteers were, I had to know everything about them, she said. A parent can’t be too careful.

Draper said she applied because she has always loved children and enjoys volunteer work. She said spending time with Jessica gives her a break from her stressful schedule.

I have a great time, she said. It’s not like work or something I have to do. It gives me an outlet away from school. She reminds me that everything is not about studying and grades.

Jeff Riegley, a senior in finance from Collinsville, said he volunteered because he wanted to have a positive male influence on a child of a single parent home.

I had a real good family life growing up, he said. I had friends that were children of single family homes, and I’ve seen the problems with only having the mother’s influence and not a positive male role model.

Riegley said balancing time is not hard, but volunteers have to be careful not to spend to much time with the child.

If you start going to their house four nights a week and something comes up, they might get upset when you can’t come over. Volunteering does take up a little time, but anyone can spare 2-4 hours a week, or a Saturday.

Riegley said he has recently started helping his child with his spelling homework. He said he hopes he will influence his child to strive for good grades and attend college.

Shaw said access to a car is a requirement for volunteering. She said whatever activities the volunteers take their child to do, they have to pay for themselves. She said the program is always looking for affordable group outings.

We try to encourage the volunteers to keep the activities simple and spend as little money as possible, she said. It’s easy to spend money on kids.

Shaw said the program basically receives financial support from the community and local businesses.

Draper said Jessica’s family has told her they can see a difference in Jessica’s attitude.

Her grandmother told me that Jessica has more of a positive self-image in herself, she said. In a big family with a busy parent, a child needs to feel special. Kids are what is important in life.