MENtors sought for Children's Mentoring Connection

Children's Mentoring Connection is seeking male mentors to guide young men in Hancock County, and will host a "MENtoring" open house to help potential volunteers learn more about the program. The open house will be held from 6-8 p.m. July 29 at Movement Church, 200 S. Main St. "One of the things that's really nice about it is we invite our current male mentors as well. And so they can come and share their experiences," said Children's Mentoring Connection Executive Director Stacy Shaw. "I mean, we can tell them what mentoring is all about, but to share that experience and to share a good story, it's so much more beneficial when they're able to share that." Mentors are needed for both the community and school-based programs. In the traditional community program, an adult volunteer is matched in a one-on-one mentoring relationship with a child. Volunteers are asked to connect with the child two to three times a month for at least six months. In the school-based program, volunteers — who can be high school age and older — are matched with a child and meet with them once a week during the academic year. Same gender matches are used in the community program, Shaw said. The school-based program allows for a bit more flexibility, since participants meet as a group with other students and mentors. "But still, to have that male presence for some of our young men who are maybe coming from single (parent) homes — or, we've got a lot of kids who live with grandparents — that gives them an opportunity to have that male perspective as well," she said. An assessment process is required for potential mentors, and any approved mentors receive training. Children's Mentoring Connection is gearing up for the coming school year, with plans to offer the program in eight city and county schools, said Shaw. One of the changes involves Jacobs Primary School, which is now closed. Active since the school-based program began, Jacobs Primary would typically have 40 children participate, Shaw said. "Because Jacobs is closing, we're changing schools a little bit. So we will be serving Whittier (Primary) and Wilson Vance (Intermediate), which are new to our program, because that's where a lot of those kiddos are going to be going," she said. The program this year will also be offered at Bigelow Hill Intermediate School, and at Glenwood and Donnell middle schools where sixth-graders will participate during the lunch period. In the county, the agency serves children in Cory-Rawson, Arcadia and Van Buren schools. "We started working with the schools that were able to have that availability where the high school students and the elementary kids' lunch periods matched up," said Shaw. "So they come and give up their lunch period once a week." Sessions are held after classes end for students in the other schools. Shaw said high school volunteers benefit from these matches as well. "What the high school students don't realize is they're learning skills as well as we go along. So they're learning how to be flexible. They're learning how to take responsibility, because they're matched 1-to-1 with that child and spending the time with them every week," she said. Matches continue throughout the school year, and the agency serves about 200 children through this program, said Shaw. "My goal next year for the school year is to have everybody have a 1-to-1 match," she said. "That's my personal goal. It's pretty lofty, but I really think that that's going to help kids excel." Although the open house is focused on male mentors, Shaw said female mentors are also needed. There are currently about 47 matches in the community-based program, with 20 to 25 children on a waiting list. A Pals program is available for volunteers who might not have the time to commit to the community-based or school-based programs, she said. These volunteers can engage in activities with youth on the waiting list. "So this is a way for us to get to know the kids better, as well as for the mentors to be able to spend some time with the kids and get them out doing things," said Shaw. "Depending on how much time you have to give, just a little bit or every week that you have to devote, we have programming to fit." She added that connections made today can last a lifetime. "The really unique thing about a program like ours is once they graduate, they formally would end with us. But they would continue on with that match, sometimes for many years to come," said Shaw. "Because we've been here almost 50 years now, I run into people who say, 'Oh, I was matched 30 years ago with my person,' and they're still connected and they still get together and do things." Call 419-424-9752 or check cmchancock.org for more information. Wolf: 419-427-8419