Mission and Vision: Youth Mentoring Connection awakens at-risk youth to their power, unique gifts and purpose by matching them with caring adult mentors and placing that “match” within a structured group dynamic that provides the resources youth need to reach productive, conscious adulthood. We further seek to awaken society to the needs, promise and value of this overlooked population.
Our Vision is of a community where young people are truly seen and not just watched, where society understands and accepts its responsibility in meeting the needs of all young people, and where young people bring their gifts back into their communities as productive members of society
Hello Friends,
I know you all know someone who would be a terrific mentor, but you just didn’t have the time, or keep forgetting to refer us to them or them to us, so we have the solution. You just have to take 3 minutes go to this link:
Fill in their information, and we will do the rest! You all have personal knowledge of the work Youth Mentoring Connection does, and if you believe in changing the world, and I know you do, please refer a mentor.
Jennifer, I almost have no words to express how I feel because this bond that we have is unexplainable. I love so much! It’s more than just a friendship its like were soul mates. You were the first person that could see where I was coming from every single time I had a problem. You made me realize that life is too short and we can’t stay stuck in things that don’t even matter and to focus on the big picture! I know you’re love is unconditional and I can’t thank you enough for being the person that you are. You’re caring and loving towards, not only me but the people you love. I thank god for putting you in my life. I love you forever and always. -xoxo Daisy
"If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint', then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced" Vincent Van Gogh.
On Tuesday a mentee revealed her feelings about her mentor and the special bond they have together.
Wednesday we were treated to Juliana's insights on her blog "Out of the Darkness Comes The Light"which tells about the strength and courage to have patience.
On Thursday's Thoughts, Crystal challenges us to examine our opinions on graffiti. There are great pictures from the "Odyssey Warner Bros. Year End Picnic 2009".
We have some fun tips for what to do this weekend for free movies in Pasadena and Sunday is a surf day with our Boarding House Mentors.
Looking for something to do with your mentee on a Friday night? How about a free movie under the stars right here in Los Angeles? The Los Angeles and Pasadena Audubon have just begun their Friday film series and they have two movie nights left before the summer is over.
On July 24th they will be screening three short films on water and watersheds: “Stream Spirit Rising", "On the Arroyo Seco", and the internationally acclaimed "FLOW". On August 28th the Audubon will be screening “The Education of Little Tree”, which is a heartbreaking and proud story of a young Cherokee boy navigating his way through his traditional Cherokee culture and the culture imposed on him through an American Indian Boarding school. I have read the book ‘‘The Education of Little Tree’’ and it brought me to tears. I have yet to see the film but I have been told it does the book justice.
So mentors, come take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to bond with your mentee. Seating is limited so you may want to arrive early. All screenings are in English with Spanish subtitles. Click here to find out the exact location and time of the film screenings.
Many people see graffiti as a nuisance, but don't take the time to acknowledge young people's creative talent. If the City Council wants to deter people from utilizing public spaces for their canvass, why don't they begin by increasing funding for more art programs in schools. If students had the opportunity to channel their creativity through art projects, we might be surprised to find the next big hits in the art world.
One of the things I am most proud of at Youth Mentoring is our approach.We call it a gift centered approach in which we “see” our young people’s gifts, and understand that sometimes, actually most times, these gifts lie right next to their wounds.And these wounds run deep… so deep at times that they are afraid to look at them much less talk about them.So I have to be patient, not a quality I am known for I will admit.But I do not walk away, no matter what, and eventually, the door opens ever so slowly and cautiously – and I stick my toe in!And I wait.
I have been having a similar conversation with two of my “babies”.One is a young woman I have known for about 6 years, and the other is a now a man who I have known for about 15 years, and they have both held me at arms length while holding on to me fiercely.They always tell me they are “fine” or “okay”, or how “they can handle it” as their eyes punch me in the heart with their pain.And I wait.
Then, she writes me a letter on her graduation, telling me how I always talked to her about letting me in, but I was the only one who she let in – I was the only one she let in….she explains.How she will miss me when she goes to college. And she loves me.
We are talking about basketball, and how he can’t give it up because it helps him escape, and what he is escaping from, and I listen. He slept that night “real good”.
"I really enjoyed being your mentee and I enjoy having you as my mentor. I really had fun. I loved the places you have taken me. Places I had never been. I really want you to be my mentor like forever, but it is time to say goodbye. You helped me out with school and my grades. You taught me things I never learned. It really seems like you are my best friend, which you are! Thank you for your time. And I appreciate all of the good things you have done for me. This speech is dedicated to my mentor, the best mentor ever".
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