Two’s Company

Because Aaron Nesmith knows firsthand how difficult it is to grow up without a father, he decided to become a father figure himself — to a young man who also needed someone to look up to. The Rochester, N.Y., resident joined Compeer, an international charity that matches adult volunteers with mentally ill people who need friendship and guidance.

Mr. Nesmith was paired with Jermaine Johnson, a young man with mental and developmental disabilities who spent much of his youth in foster care and residential programs for the mentally ill.

The relationship was distant at first, but the awkwardness disappeared during a fishing trip when Jermaine made his first catch.

“He started grabbing me and hugging me,” Mr. Nesmith recalls. Now, the two are hooked on the friendship. “I couldn’t stop if I wanted to,” Mr. Nesmith says.

Compeer, which at any given time supports 4,000 similar relationships in the United States as well as in Australia and Canada, was founded in 1973, at a time when many people with mental illnesses were confined to institutions. Now the Rochester group serves an increasingly diverse population, including homeless people, those with developmental disabilities, and emotionally troubled children.

People with mental illnesses also serve as Compeer volunteers and staff members.

“But our basic mission has never changed,” says Katey Breen, coordinator of the group’s programs overseas. “For anyone who wants a friendship, we try to provide it.”