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25 Jul 2002
ELLSWORTH—Forty-two years may seem like a big age gap but
not for two members of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hancock
County.
Big
brother Marcel Nuss, 52, of Ellsworth, and Justin, 10, his little brother, were matched nearly
two years ago.
Since
then the two have bonded.
Nuss
joined the program after his 18-year-old son, Corey, died
in a motor vehicle accident during the 1998 ice storm.
Nuss
said he had wanted to have a positive influence on the
community.
But, he
said, Corey was another reason to join.
Nuss
said Corey was a better person than he was.
“He was
willing to accept almost anybody,” Nuss said.
The
community support after Corey’s death was yet another
reason to get involved.
Because
of the compassion the community showed his family, “I felt
a need to give back,” Nuss said.
Joining
the program was not without concerns for Nuss.
He said
he wondered whether he was trying to fill a void left by
his son.
Age was
another worry.
“You
wonder if you can relate,” Nuss said.
But, he
has related and has served as big brother to two other
boys before Chamberlain.
Of
Justin, Nuss said, “he’s really kind of a pleasure.”
The
feeling is mutual.
At a
recent recognition dinner, Justin read the following
to describe what Nuss means to him.
“My big
brother, Marcel, is very nice to me,” said Justin.
“He takes me everywhere and does everything from kayaking
and swimming to fishing and kite-flying.
“I
couldn’t imagine a life without him. Besides my father, he
is one of the nicest people I know. I love him and look up
to him.”
Nuss and
Justin spend about three to four hours together every
other week.
Nuss
said he sees his big brother role as “temporarily filling
a void” as his “littles” grow up.
Nuss
remembered the challenges of working and finding time to
spend with his children.
He said
he tries to explain to each “little” that the child’s
parents want to do fun activities with him but can be
short on time.
Nuss
said he encourages others to consider volunteering as Big
Brothers.
“Sometimes we get locked in a rut as we grow older and we
don’t have the courage to try something new,” he said.
People
may find they actually have a lot of fun, he said.
“You
work on a one-to-one basis with the children,” said Nuss.
“You can get to see the world through the eyes of a child
again.”
The Big
Brother Big Sister program of Hancock and Washington
Counties needs more volunteers, especially men, according
to director Karen Brown. Call 667-5304 for more
information.
Until
last year, Nuss owned Regal Press on Washington Street.
He and
his wife, Donna, are selling their Ellsworth home with the
intention of living year-round at their Patten Pond camp
in Surry, which they recently renovated.
Daughter
Christy Nuss is fighting fires in Colorado at the moment.
She and her boyfriend Ryan, work for the National Park
Service, fixing trails and building bridges, to name a few
activities.
But,
because the area is so short on firefighters, they were
enlisted for firefighting, Nuss said.
The
Nusses moved to Maine from Long Island in 1972.
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