[Community-service] National Mentoring Month

Mon Jan 23 21:50:53 UTC 2012

Mentorship can be a very powerful thing to be sure.
  In the National Federation of the Blind, we tend to mentor by role
modeling ways that we as  blind people go about our daily lives (how
we travel using cane or dog, wread, write and communicate using
braille,technologies, interact with the sighted public).
  this can be done  by showing people how to treat others, helping
people  become successful students, or just a host of  other ways.
 one way that I was able to do this, was by being a mentor in a
pan-disability youth leadership forum.  I was  able to interact with
the youth in that program in  a very simpledown-to -earth way.
 I didn't need to impress them withstories about what great awards I
had, or how great a student I was, or how many states/countries I've
been to.
 Believe it or not, I didn't have to impress them withhow comfortable
I am with my blindness-- infact, all I had to do was to just be there.
 I just had to listen when needed, relate when i could, point people
in the right direction when possible, but just be myself in the end.
 I had  the most fun when I connected in such a way.  People knew me
because i was energetic, loud, and willing to chat people up.
  I don't know if I've made a great impact on many of them, but I'm
pretty sure  that looking back the youth in the program will remember
me and take something positive from the expirience.
  Thanks for reading,
  Darian

On 1/22/12, Jessica <cloudedleopard2010 at gmail.com> wrote:
> Chris,
> Well put. I have been a mentor in similar situations. It is amazing how
> little time it takes and with a few simple words to change a person's
> outlook on their future or something relatively minor like a school project.
> Jessica
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: community-service-bounces at nfbnet.org
> [mailto:community-service-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Chris Parsons
> Sent: Monday, January 16, 2012 9:11 PM
> To: Community Service Discussion List
> Subject: Re: [Community-service] National Mentoring Month
>
> Hi all,
>
> I think having a mentor is incredibly important. The mentoring relationship
> gives you the opportunity to interact with and learn from someone who has
> possibly been where you are and who has experienced some of the things you
> have and can offer advice and help you gain confidence in yourself. There is
> just something about being able to talk to and share your experiences with
> someone who can really relate.
>
> I've mentioned here before that I volunteer with a group for blind
> teenagers. As a volunteer, I am responsible for various things, but the
> thing that I find most rewarding is something that is not a formal volunteer
> responsibility. My favorite part of working with these teens is just getting
> to talk to them and share experiences. I used to be a part of this group
> before I graduated from high school, and I remember how important it was
> then for me to hear from those who had been where I was and with whom I
> could share and discuss experiences. Now I want to be able to give back to
> this new group of kids in the same way.
>
> I have also had and continue to have mentors within the NFB, especially as I
> take on more leadership roles and learn what it takes to be a leader.
>
> I think that some of the qualities that make a great mentor are being a good
> listener; having a willingness to share one's experiences; having a desire
> to teach and guide others, but also to let them figure things out so they
> gain confidence in themselves and their skills; and having the ability to
> teach through example (to show, not just tell).
>
> I think the biggest challenge/fear I have faced in being a mentor is having
> enough confidence in myself and my own skills to feel like I am making a
> difference to others, and although I still struggle with this, one thing I
> have found while mentoring this new group of teenagers is that a lot of
> times it's the small things you do that stay with those you mentor--stopping
> for a moment to explain Braille to one teen and to show her a couple of
> letters, answering a group's questions about college--and not just the
> typical academic questions, or praising another student's work because I
> know she feels uncertain about her own skills even though she's done a
> really great job. Being a mentor doesn't mean you have to set this perfect
> example (this spoken by a true perfectionist, *smile*). It just means that
> you are there for those you are mentoring--to listen, to offer advice (and
> to admit when you don't know the answer), and to help your mentees gain
> confidence in themselves so they can be successful and hopefully go on to
> mentor others. For me, the most rewarding thing about mentoring is so simple
> to articulate but so incredibly important at the same time, and that is the
> chance to make a difference in someone's life.
>
> Chris
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Community Service Content
> Sent: Thursday, January 12, 2012 12:17 PM
> To: community-service at nfbnet.org
> Subject: [Community-service] National Mentoring Month
>
> Hello all,
>
> You may have heard that January is National Mentoring Month. Serving as a
> mentor to an individual or a group can be a very rewarding way to give back.
>
> This month gives us an opportunity to reflect upon mentoring: How important
> is having a mentor? Who has been a mentor to us in the past?
> What qualities make a great mentor? Have we ourselves been a mentor to
> someone? What challenges, benefits, fears, and or rewards are involved in
> being either a mentor or mentee? As we take the time to think about and
> share our experiences, we can also tell our mentors how much we appreciate
> them on January 26, which is Thank Your Mentor Day!
>
> January also presents an ideal time to take action. If you want to learn
> more about NMM or would like to join an organization in your community to
> mentor others, you can go to:
>
> http://www.nationalmentoringmonth.org/
>
> Happy mentoring!
>
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-- 
Darian Smith

"To dream what is possible and to put oneself in service of that dream is the
formula
for a life well lived."

- Dr. Peter Benson