Another of the 20 PBH programs which reach out to Boston children is the One-to-One program, which pairs Harvard students with children from four Cambridge area housing developments.

Kelly A. Smith '96 says she chose to become a Big Sibling because she was homesick during her first weeks at Harvard. "I missed my little sister and I missed being around children," she says.

Smith says dealing with a child by herself is often financially as well as emotionally draining.

When she visits her Little Sister, Smith says she pays $3.40 in T-fare as well as an average of $10 if she and her sibling choose to see a movie or visit a museum.

"If I stay at her house or if we walk around, I have to be very resourceful," Smith says, "Especially in the cold weather."

Although Smith says she thinks the One-to-One program is effective in providing children with much needed friend, she says she often worries over the program's procedure.

"We had a meeting where we went over a handbook on what not to do." Smith says. "As far as how to deal with a problem child, their advice is more 'Wait until you have a problem and then give us a call and we'll tell you what to do.'"

Smith says her seven-year-old Little Sister, Melissa, who lives with her grandparents in the New towne Count housing project became part of the One-to-One program because her grandmother felt she needed a friend she could trust.

"I'm a friend that's not going to do anything bad to her, that's not going to take sides when she has a fight with her family, someone she can trust," Smith says.

When family and schools don't give children the attention they need, PBH volunteers seek to give children the friendships and the support they need to be successful.