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By Mike Gervais
Register Staff
7-7-2009 Youngsters from all walks of life seek guidance from the adults around them, but, unfortunately, many who come from single-parent homes, or who have a parent deployed for long periods of time in the military, don’t know who to turn to.
To help broaden those children’s options and horizons, the Bishop Rotary Club is bringing the community together to support Inyo County’s mentoring program.
Inyo County Health and Human Services and the Bishop Rotary Club will host a “Support Mentoring” event in the Bishop City Park from 5:30-8:30 p.m. on Friday, July 10 with free food and games and an opportunity to meet local mentors and program leaders and to find more information about serving as a mentor.
Currently, the Health and Human Services program has two mentors matched with kids and two youngsters waiting for adults to volunteer in the program. Health and Human Services Mentor Coordinator Valerie Carlson-Behendt said there are two more youngsters applying for the program who will need mentors soon.
Mentors are matched with youth who may share the same interests, personal beliefs or even aspirations.
By matching like-minded adults and youth, mentoring programs throughout the country create life-long bonds that help both the child and adult mentor grow.
“I have learned a lot from these kids,” said 25-year mentor Bart Godett of Big Pine. “Some have come from an extremely poor background, but I’ve seen every one of these kids show that they have a big, big heart and really care a lot about someone in their lives.”
More than 25 years ago, Godett saw a commercial on television advertising Big Brothers and Big Sisters, and thought he could get involved in that program. His first mentoree was a 14-year-old high school freshman who is now 39, and continues contact with Godett.
“He’s really in to the outdoors, and we used to vacation here when I started mentoring him,” Godett said.
Since beginning his career as a mentor, Godett has worked with many other youngsters, forging life-long bonds.
He said one of his more recent mentorees has gotten wrapped up in life and, aside from annual Christmas cards, doesn’t keep in steady contact, but the other relationships he formed through the program remain strong.
“There’s a big need out there, there’s a lot of people who don’t realize they have what it takes for this,” Godett said. “(But) it’s definitely not for everyone. These kids are going to test you, and if you don’t have the patience, it’s not for you. But if you do, it will teach you to cherish life in a different manner.”
While Godett likes to spend time teaching his mentorees about music (he is a rock drummer), the outdoors and the art of pottery-making, a mentor’s duties to their kids “can vary a great deal due to the situation,” said Carlson-Behendt. “I had one young man who wanted a mentor to shoot baskets with and not talk at all. Some of them want to listen to you, and some of them want to talk, it just depends.”
Mentors must be 18 or older and are required to go through a screening process. “If you do have some old crimes, as long as it is not a crime against someone else or children, you can apply for an exemption,” Carlson-Behendt said.
Those who are eligible to serve as mentors will receive training from Health and Human Services on how to communicate with their mentoree and how to handle certain situations that occur with mentors and their young friends.
Mentors are asked to serve six hours each month with their mentoree and attend one mentor’s lunch each month to create a peer-support group among the adults.
“There is a need out there, and once you start looking at it, it’s just one of those things that hopefully we can get enough interested people around it to get a core group going,” Godett said. “Sometimes in numbers we can help each other out.”
Anyone who is interested in becoming a mentor is encouraged to attend the gathering Friday evening to discuss the program with current mentors and program leaders.
Anyone interested in supporting the program, but not in serving as a mentor, is also encouraged to attend.
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