Alejandra Delgado

I work for a non-profit organization called Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS). BBBS's mission is to create one-on-one mentoring relationships for at-risk children, “Littles”, through carefully monitored and supported matches. I co-run the school program in which “Bigs” meet with their “Littles” at the little’s schools during their lunch time, elective hour, or after-school program. I love my job because I am able to pair up children with a friend that also acts as a guide in different areas of their lives.

We often hear that networking has many benefits. While you build your connections you are more likely to get referrals, hear about job opportunities, increase your support system, share and receive ideas, etc. While I knew many of these benefits from personal experience, I was astonished when I heard that the present and former president of the Florida Counseling Association (FCA), Dr. Shon Smith and Ms. Kathryn WIlliams respectively, had taken their leadership roles as the result of their network systems.

Imagine being 10 years old and being bullied for your sexual orientation. You like the opposite gender of what the society considers acceptable. You may be thinking this is not new - homosexuals are bullied everyday. But what if you live in a world where being homosexual is the norm and you are bullied for being heterosexual?

Human beings long connected-ness. It has been our nature to need and want social relationships since our creation but times have changed from when TV’s, video games, cellphones, and the Internet weren’t around. Nowadays, technology is everywhere. Most adolescents and adults can’t live without it

Human beings long connected-ness. It has been our nature to need and want social relationships since our creation but times have changed from when TV’s, video games, cellphones, and the Internet weren’t around. Nowadays, technology is everywhere. Most adolescents and adults can’t live without it