In 1987, a young man walked into my office wanting to become a Big Brother. Rob seemed quite content with his life as a sophomore at Amherst College, but he missed his three younger siblings back home in Cambridge, Mass. Although he was quite busy with a rigorous schedule of classes as well as athletic practices being on the football and baseball teams, he wanted to make the commitment to be a "Big Brother" to a boy in Amherst. Hence the beginning of a very special friendship between Rob and his "little brother," Jeremy.
Jeremy was an energetic, wiry, enthusiastic nine-year-old sports fanatic who lived with his mother in Amherst. His father's recent death had left a void in his life with no male companionship. The idea of being matched with a big brother who was not only a football player, but also a baseball player was extremely exciting to him. The minute they met, there was electricity! This was the beginning of a friendship with great potential.
For the past 19 years, I have thought about this pair quite often and wondered how they were, if they still kept in touch with each other and what they were doing. They had been our poster boys for a while. The Daily Hampshire Gazette, for instance, had done a story on them and their picture was the cover of our brochure for many years.
This past February, I received a surprise e-mail from Jeremy, thanking me for introducing him to Rob almost 20 years ago. He went on to tell me that they were still close friends and that Rob continues to affect his life deeply.
"As you may recall, nearly 20 years ago, you introduced me to Rob. I cannot explain to you enough how grateful I am to have Rob in my life," said Jeremy.
He told me that for the last three years he had been working for the Mets, but would soon be moving to California. He went on to say, "The dream of working for the Mets goes back close to 20 years ago. Believe it or not, Rob took me to my first ever New York Mets game. During the middle of the game, I told him that some day, I was going to work at Shea Stadium. Rob still wishes I would like the Red Sox more, however, my heart and soul is with the Mets. I am now an executive in their Front Office as a Corporate Sales Representative."
After Jeremy made the initial contact with me, I began communicating with Rob as well. "Yes, Jeremy and I have stayed in touch over the years and have continued to build on our friendship," he said. "I am extremely proud of his successes to date and am looking forward to this next chapter in his life ... Special thanks to the program for making the introduction. I'll always remember walking into your office that first day. By introducing Jeremy to me, the program has made my life richer. I hope other Amherst students are as fortunate in the coming years."
This article was first featured in the program's Fall 2006 newsletter, The Big Big News. Moss is the Director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hampshire County.