“Everybody deserves a second chance – period.”  That is the mindset of the HCCS Volunteer of the Year, Paul Borg.  Paul is the President and CEO of B and B Maintenance Services, Inc. and has worked with Holy Cross Children's Services and Samaritan Center since 2001.  Paul’s company, formerly known as Tidwell, provides building maintenance, janitorial, demolition and landscaping services to a number of businesses in the metro Detroit area including Holy Cross Children's Services, Samaritan Center, Lawrence Technological University and Advanced Technology Academies.  He also is President and CEO of GME Transportation with offices in Shelby Township, Michigan and Atlanta, Georgia.  This company provides air freight services for DHL and includes a fleet of eight trucks. His business partner is now his daughter, Blake, who is 21 and also attends Macomb Community College.  The combined revenues of the two companies are about $3 million annually and Paul employs 38 workers. Paul has worked with HCCS and Samaritan Center for the past eight years.  He has the highest regard for the services that HCCS provides to youth needing help and offers the opinion that “If Loren (HCCS Executive Director Loren Brown) is willing to take a chance, so am I.”  It is exactly that mindset that led to Paul becoming an “opportunity mentor” to a young man who moved from one of HCCS’ residential programs to the Supervised Independent Living (SIL) program. Youth are placed in SIL programming when they don’t have a viable family to return to.  An opportunity mentor is someone who works to help the mentee address issues as they arise, good and bad, just like a parent would. The goal of SIL services is to help a young person identify and implement a plan leading to successful independent living in the community.  Important goals include obtaining housing, finishing school/obtaining a GED if needed, obtaining employment, securing transportation, developing community knowledge, finding a house of worship, etc.  So Paul works with his mentee to help with jobs, transportation, community resources, etc.                                                                                                                          

    Paul received a call from Loren one day asking if he would help a young man moving into SIL programming with a job and guidance.  Paul said yes and found out quickly that the young man’s SIL living arrangement put him a mere six miles away.  Paul agreed to hire the young man through B and B Maintenance Services, Inc. on a part-time basis.  This client now works with Paul three to four days each week and has also been hired to work on some personal events Paul and Blake have hosted.  The client has indicated he is saving money to buy a car and Paul has offered to help him with his purchase and to obtain insurance once he gets his driver’s license.  In the meantime, Paul or Blake picks the client up each morning for work and makes sure he gets a ride home as well.  Paul provided the client $50 up front to help him with food and to help him prepare for landscaping work including buying water bottles and a backpack.  Paul indicates he really believes that this young man will succeed and applauds him for all he is trying to do.  He hopes to help work him into a full-time janitorial job this winter and describes his mentee as “appreciative, hard-working and wanting to succeed.” Paul grew up in Detroit and laughingly notes that he attended St. Andrew Catholic School (now a Holy Cross Children's Services site) and played basketball at both St. Thomas (another current Holy Cross Children's Services site) and St. Cecilia (a former Holy Cross Children's Services site).  It seems he was destined to volunteer for HCCS! His concern for others isn’t limited to HCCS. He has also helped individuals from foreign countries with work visas and has helped individuals returning from incarceration with jobs, food, transportation and related items. Paul summarized his mindset this way – “I always give everybody a chance because I know that people can have bad breaks.  I believe in kids big time and that is why I admire what Holy Cross Children's Services does.  I adopted the HCCS mission when I began working at Samaritan Center.” There is at least one HCCS client who is grateful that someone like Paul is there for him – and so are we.