This event is open to all current and new mentors. We share information about our experiences as mentors, as well as exchange ideas about outings and individual strategies to engage children. Mentor roundtable provides support and dialogue! Please join us here at 909 Purdue Avenue. Light refreshments provided.

PREP is important because it is the best place to hang out. Also, we have a lot of fun and get to take a break from school. And another good thing is we get to confess everything in our life. Also, we get to learn life skills. But the best part is we get to play new games that I never played before. Plus I get relaxed by doing yoga and stretching. And we get to learn how to cook delicious foods like crepes, pizza and other things. But the almost best thing is that we get to play Ad Attack and get a mentor. It is cool that we get to meet kids from different schools.

Guest Blogger:

James Masterson

Elementary PREP Student

Mentors often mention feeling unsure about whether they are having an impact on their protégés. You cannot spend time with another individual without impacting each other in some way, to some degree. You can make a concerted effort to assist a child who is reading below grade level to become more proficient by reading together. This may observably improve his reading skills. A less measurable impact that may be far more life changing may occur in the area of improved self esteem, not just because of the improved reading ability but because of the message conveyed to the child during the process of reading that the child is worthwhile. The development of skills and a recognition of the worth of a child are two protective factors that help children avoid substance abuse issues. The bonding that occurs between a protégé and his mentor offers more protection against the lure of drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. Empowering children to make the choice to avoid abusing harmful substances is the mission of Discovering Options. The impact mentors can have far supersedes this goal.

Granted, mentors are just one element in the constellation of forces that impact children. Peers, family, school, neighborhood, and society all exert their forces on children as well. However we have all read about or heard interviews with people of noted achievement whose roots have been in poverty, neglect, devaluation, or disenfranchisement. Those successful individuals all point to one common denominator in their ability to flourish despite the odds. They can identify one person in their childhood or adolescence who enabled them to see themselves as competent and deserving. For some it was a teacher or coach, for others it was a neighbor or an older relative. That person demonstrated a belief in the child, recognized his abilities or skills, and had a caring relationship with him. Those people were mentors. And they did have an impact.

Miss Kelly Lachacjzyk, LCSW

Dear to whom it may concern,

PREP is really fun it helps me become a better person. Other kids should take PREP because you will learn to do right like not to smoke. It also teaches you to be better than when you got to PREP. You will get a mentor. A mentor is really fun. A mentor helps you with your homework and takes you places that is fun and you can talk to mentors about anything. My mentor took me out to eat and to a museum.

I love PREP very much. I wish I could go to PREP every day. Thank you PREP for helping me be a better person.

Love,

Cierra Smith

6th Grade, Herzog Elementary

Becoming a mentor with Discovering Options has been a great experience. I feel blessed to be a part of my protege’s life. He is an amazing boy with so much potential. His family has been extremely welcoming of me and are always appreciative of my time. It is so much fun to watch him try new things for the first time or to see the smile on his face and know he is having a great time.

–Caroline Crocker

The light turned red, so I pulled up to the crosswalk and brought my car to a stop. A young man, maybe 16 or 17 was crossing the street. He walked without purpose and took a deep drag off what appeared to be a cigar and continued across. The young man seemed sad and heavy with some invisible burden. His head was hanging and his expression was that of resignation and hopelessness. Seeing him made me think about the children we serve and how without support and a caring adult presence and a chance to engage with others in a safe and structured environment, the very children we serve could be this young man.

Too many of the children we serve are expected to care for younger siblings while parents work one or maybe two jobs and those same children have access to too much information about adult worries and problems.   Allowing children to share adult burdens is both heavy and expensive.

When you mentor or contribute to Discovering Options you are helping children reclaim their child hoods and develop the skills they need to navigate the waters of adolescence. Please consider mentoring, a child is waiting for you right now.

Charmaine Smith