On Monday, as I sat with my mentee she began telling a story about a homeless man to one of her classmates who was sitting at the table with us. The story went something like this.
She was walking to Subway and saw a homeless man holding up a sign which read "I'm Hungry". She said after she came back out the man kept pointing to his sign and yelling he was hungry. Instead of just walking by, she said she went up to him and said, "I realize you are hungry, I'm not. Just wanted to let you know my food was delicious. Yummm." I was dead-panned. I was like you're kidding right? She said no. Her rationale was she said it because he kept yelling that he was hungry. Then she had the nerve to say she was offended when the homeless man called her a smart ass.
After listening to her story and watching her and her little friend laugh, I immediately asked her why she would even say that. I even tried to have her empathize with the man who was obviously homeless and hungry but she just kept laughing like it was all a big joke. It just made me sad and disgusted that she felt saying that was even the least bit appropriate.
Things like that just make me question what is wrong with our society? I could NEVER even imagine saying something like that to someone who was clearly disadvantaged. All she had to do was walk by, no smart alect comments were needed. If she wanted to help his cause she could've saved a piece of her sandwich or bought him a bag of chips. How can people be so heartless? I've never been homeless or even close, but I've always had a compassionate spirit and am selfless when it comes to helping others. I just don't understand how others don't care about anyone but themselves.
While I enjoy being a mentor, that was the last straw for me. I think after this school year I'm going to go back to focusing my efforts on working with the elderly. These kids are something else and I feel like I'm not getting through to them. When I work with seniors it is so much more rewarding and they are so appreciative when you spend even a short amount of time with them. I'm truly fearful for the next generation. How can so-called young, innocent children be so heartless?
I've mentioned in previous posts that I am a mentor with an organization based in Washington, D.C. called College Bound. College Bound is a program for students in the 8-12th grades, who attend public school in the District and prepares them on their journey to college.
The program is structured in a way that the partners (mentors) meet with their students (mentees) once a week at four sites around DC for 2 hours per week. Most of the time is spent assisting students with their homework and various projects for schools. Those partners who have older students typically help them prepare for college entrance exams and work on admissions essays. In addition to tutoring, it is encouraged that partners forge a bond with our students and do things with them outside of the weekly site visit.
This is my second year volunteering with the program and it's been a rewarding experience. My mentee is in the 8th grade and she's been quite a challenge to work with. When I met her she was failing English. She still has a long way to go but I've learned to be supportive in trying to help her with what she's not being taught in school. It amazes me that she's 13 and does not know the basics concepts of grammar or how to spell simple words that my 6 year old nephew knows. The problem stems from no one correcting her, so she simply did not know. There are so many problems with the DC public school system that I'm not going to go into right now, but all these kids need is someone to show them a little support and guidance.
With that said, College Bound is always looking for new Partners to make a difference in the lives of these children. I always find it interesting that less than half of the Partners are Black, while I'd say 98% of the students are Black or Hispanic. Not that there is anything wrong with having mentors of other races but it's extremely important for our children to be able to see someone who looks like them, who have gone to college, who have careers and can tell them first hand about their experiences and how they made it to where they are in life.
If you live in the DMV and are interested in becoming a mentor, please visit College Bound's website to get involved. They are in dire need of mentors as there is a waiting list for students because of the shortage of mentors.
I hope everyone who reads this post set a goal for the New Year to become a mentor in 2010. It's a rewarding experience and it only requires a couple hours of your time each week. There are kids out there who just need a little guidance from you to help them become a better person.
So I've always been a very involved person, I think it started in high school, you name it, I did it. College and grad school was much of the same. I've always enjoyed being busy and being surrounded by people who could nurture me as an individual both personally and professionally.Now, I'm a member of many organizations including my alumni association, numerous business/civic associations, and my Sorority. Lately, everyone is all caught up in "networking". We've all heard the saying, "It's not what you know, it's who you know," but often times I feel like networking is so overrated.In my experience, at meetings and networking events I go to you meet someone, speak briefly, exchange business cards and never hear from that person again. I usually try to send a brief follow-up email but it never seems to progress. I feel like the only time the networking encounter evolves into more is if the other person is trying to holler. That is all well and good but if I'm trying to get to know you on a professional level, to help me advance my career, I'm not really trying to go out on a date with you. Nor am I interested in a quid pro quo relationship.I'm sure there has to be a more effective way to meet people but as of now, I'm over the whole "networking" thing. I hoped by networking I'd be able to find a mentor but as of now I've had no such luck, any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated.
