BBBS helps develop lifelong friendship

Abby Gerdts and Megan

When Abby Gerdts first contemplated a role as a Big Sister, she was looking for a way to be involved with children.

“I just have had a passion for kids, and I think it’s very important to establish relationships with them,” said Gerdts, a senior at Northwest Missouri State University from Smithville. “I was always surrounded by kids, but I was up here in college and really didn’t have that.”

She has found it in her relationship with Megan, a 9-year-old with whom Gerdts was matched through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Nodaway County in September 2014.

“I think it’s a great program,” said Sandra Shermuly, Megan’s mom. “I’m a single mother, and life is very busy, so Megan doesn’t always get the attention she deserves at home. It’s good for her to have a relationship with somebody so she can have stories of her own to tell.

“It’s hard for her to get her own individuality. She’s the youngest, and the next oldest is 15. It’s good that she has Abby to give her that attention.”

Megan likes it, too. Over the last year and a half that the two have been matched, Megan has come to love those moments they share together.

“I feel like I can tell her anything,” she said. “She’s always happy. She never gets mad or anything.

“She’s always smiling.”

Gerdts’ personality has reflected on Megan. The two try to meet weekly and enjoy just about any activity together. From crafts to baking to doing activities at the Maryville Community Center, they find joy in even the littlest of things.

“We actually do lots of different things,” Gerdts said. “We really like to bake together and make food, something from scratch usually, then we decorate it. She likes to go to the park, so we do that a lot. We’ll go to the community center, walk, jump rope and play basketball. Some nights we sit and do our nails.

“One night we were sitting at the table trying to think of something to do, and I had a Lifesaver sitting on the table. We just started pushing that back and forth, and we ended up doing that for an hour and a half. We just like to see what we’re in the mood for and just do it. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy.”

The game of Lifesaver table hockey was so much fun that Megan has requested it again. More importantly, though, the relationship has proven to be a vital part of Megan’s life.

“Before Abby started meeting with her, Megan was shy and kind of clingy to Mom,” Sandra Shermuly said. “Since her and Abby started their relationship, she has really opened up to people. She is changing with the dynamics.

“I feel like she has gained some independence. It’s been a good experience.”

Gerdts also has served witness to the changes growing inside her Little.

“I would just ask her questions and let her tell stories, and she’d have to open up that way,” Gerdts said. “She just got comfortable with me and just opened up. She’s definitely not quiet anymore. She talks non-stop now. It’s been a good thing. I think she feels like she can just be herself around me. I enjoy that.”

But Megan isn’t the only one benefitting. As someone who wants to go into social work and assist children and families, Gerdts has enjoyed her experience with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Nodaway County.

“It’s just a special relationship,” she said. “It’s nice to have someone to be a role model for. It makes me think; it challenges me. It makes me think about what I’m doing and what I’m saying.

“To be able to see where she started out and where she is now is the biggest thing. She’s way more confident in herself. Just watching her change and grow has been a really good experience. She’s taught me a lot, too.”

The match will officially end when Gerdts graduates in April, but the two say they have forged a lifelong friendship. Sandra Shermuly appreciates that and the program.

“In a world where everything is so fast-paced, even the most successful parents get caught up in lives outside of home,” Shermuly said. “To have those volunteers step up and say, ‘I want to spend time with a child,’ is incredible. Whether it teaches them responsibility or independence, it helps them.

“It gives that child something of their own that no one in their family can take from them. It increases their self-confidence and makes them more successful in life.”