We respectfully request that the details of this story are not shared outside this evening for confidentiality reasons.

Jacob is an active, chatty young boy who lives in Te Atatu with his grandmother, older sister, and older brother. His mother has problems with addiction, and his father has never been in his life. He was uplifted by Oranga Tamariki when he was younger, and lived with his adult sisters for some time, and moved to the care of his grandmother about a year ago. The uplift was very traumatic for Jacob, and his grandmother felt he would really benefit from the support of a positive male role model in his life.

Quantity surveyor Richard grew up on Auckland’s North Shore with two siblings. His parents divorced when he was ten, and his relationship with his father was not very positive. He was lucky enough to have an incredible stepfather as a teenager, and considers him a mentor. This was what prompted him to volunteer with BBBS – he wanted to be able to give back to a young boy in a similar situation.

When we asked Jacob what his favourite things were, he told us that he loves ice-skating (he hasn’t actually tried this yet, but insisted it be included), painting, soccer, Lego, playing in the sandpit, red pandas, lizards, fruit and sausages. His favourite subject at school is art, and he wants to go to the jungle one day!

Richard has been an integral part of building Jacob’s confidence over the past year – it can be scary for Jacob to try new things, but with Richard’s encouragement (and a safe place on his mentor’s shoulders) he has been gradually becoming braver. They love spending time with animals, playing sport, and exploring Auckland.