Big Brothers, Little Gamers

"'Playing videogames was important when we first started to go on outings,' says Matt, 31, a volunteer Big Brother from London, Ontario, who has been partnered with his 15-year-old 'Little,' Patrick, for more than five years. 'It gave my Little an opportunity to do something he enjoys and let his mind drift off being nervous around a new person. We were also able to chat casually while playing and avoided any awkward silences during conversation lapses.'

"Since those early gaming sessions, Matt and Patrick's relationship has grown into a strong friendship based on shared fun."

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How many articles have you guys used that picture for?

Good read. I remember when I was a dorm head for a bunch of high school age guys the first night was awful. We had these terrible name games and "say something unique about yourself" nonsense that everyone hated.

I finally got people to start chatting by just bringing up video games. I asked them to talk about which one's they liked, which ones they were excited about, and before I knew it they were all talking and debating with each other.

I wish there were more known stories like this in the public ether. It may not happen every single time a console powers on, but it does bring people together, at least sometimes. Maybe this kind of thing would shut some of the video games are evil crowd up.

This is great. Any way to reach out to these kids is good, and these interviewed Big Brothers/Sisters seem to know how to make the most of this new technology. Hey, they make sure the parents are aware of the games the children play, and generally stay away from the violent ones. Fantastic.