Many youth feel they don’t matter, don’t have adults supporting them and don’t think positively about their future. If you had a special person in your life who guided, nurtured, supported and taught you that you mattered, you had a mentor.
Building Futures is a national one-to-one mentoring program determined to move youth from risk to resiliency. The program helps build a better future for youth by matching them with an adult mentor for one year.
Free of cost to families, trained mentors work to understand cultural and social development, mental health issues, risk factors, and offer ways to communicate and relate to youth.
As a mentor you will spend time with a participant, 8-16 years old, who may be an at- risk youth dealing with low self-esteem, social isolation, family problems, peer conflicts, poor academics, and/or poor decision making skills. The goal of the program is to help youth gain positive, consistent, and nurturing relationships with adults. Also, to build self-esteem, decision-making skills, improve school performance and make healthy interpersonal relationships.
As a mentor you will gain personal satisfaction from making a difference in a youth’s life by devoting time and sharing your strengths. You will also find increased regard and respect for people from different cultures and backgrounds; not most importantly, you will achieve a sense of belonging to your community with lasting memories and fun times!
“The past year I have become an integral part of my mentee’s life. We play laser tag, ball, visit a ton of tourist attractions, the library, watch baseball games, etc. These activities help build my mentee’s self-esteem and give him the ability to escape his often chaotic environment at home and in his neighborhood. The program’s been rewarding in my life too; allowing me to reconnect with my inner child and exposing me to neighborhoods and cultures outside of my comfort zone. I can’t recommend Building Futures program enough. Try it. You’ll be surprised by the impact you can make in someone’s life.” -Kevin, Building Futures Mentor