Beverly and Cora
Beverly and Cora
When BBBS matched Big Sister Beverly Rachal with Little Sister Cora, the Vietnam War was just ending, the cost of a first-class stamp was only 8 cents, and the sounds of Roberta Flack could be heard regularly on the radio.
Today, Beverly and Cora are still close friends.
Their story is a testament to the positive impact mentoring has not only on our Littles, but on our Bigs as well.
Bevery recently contacted BBBS to let us know about her relationship with Cora, and was kind enough to answer some questions about their long-standing match.
Describe your first meeting with your Little Sister.
I met Cora and her grandmother (Cora Brown) at their home; was immediately interviewed by her at length! 
She wanted to know why I chose her little girl! After passing her inspection, I was allowed to take her out for ice cream.
What types of things would you two do together when you were first matched?
We went to concerts at the Summit (now Lakewood Church), family outings with my family and just plain hung out.
Describe how your relationship with Cora has changed through the years.
Through the years of our relationship, we have become very close and a strong bond of understanding a friendship developed.
Talk about some of the moments when you were most proud of Cora and your mentoring relationship with her.
When she graduated from the University of Houston! Also she aced her interview with a good friend of mine at a private school where she had already hired her staff. But after interviewing Cora she was hired on site!! Actually in the next couple of years, I too was hired to work in the administration office at the same school, and we became co-workers. When she went through a low point of losing her grandmother and her employment opportunities did not turn out like she wanted them to, I advised Cora to hold her head up high and to strive to accomplish what she felt good doing and not what she thought should be expected of her. We had long talks and girls weekends a lot.
Describe how your life and Cora’s life would be different if Big Brothers Big Sisters hadn’t matched you two together.
I would have missed out on being able to have help mold her into the beautiful, thoughtful wonderful woman she is today.
You’ve both stayed in contact for more than 30 years. Why do you think this is?
We both have a strong faith in God, we are both Christian and through the years we actually ended up at the same church {Windsor Village United Methodist} and she is now at the sister church downtown St. John ’s United Methodist. We still visit each other’s churches and functions and just have a fun time together. I am in life for the long haul; I still have have friends with me from age five to today, and I’ll be celebrating my 30th wedding anniversary in November! So, to still have this relationship with Cora is just a natural feeling to me, it just worked out.
What would you say to someone who’s considering becoming a Big, but isn’t sure if it’s the right thing to do?
I would encourage anyone with time to volunteer to help mentor our youth, because it is a very rewarding and satisfying feeling to know you have made a difference is someone’s life that actually will helped frame their future.
