'Mentor Monthly' Newsletter

March 2024

According to MENTOR, the mentoring gap continues to increase which means youth are finding themselves without formal or natural mentors in their lives. We know, though, that there are strong correlations between mentoring during childhood and increased sense of belonging and stronger mental health.

We're thinking ahead to next school year and look forward to spending the next several months making connections and building relationships. Are you a part of a church group, civic organization, volunteer club, or business? YMI would love to meet with your group! Please contact Megan or complete our Contact Us form.

Five year - ROLE MODEL

Jessica Christianson

Kari Kittleson

Frank Lewis

Cody Sharp

Mickey Sliwa

Updated YMI Mentor Handbook & Program Policies - Our handbook has been recently revised and is available for you HERE. It is important that YMI mentors review the document and refamiliarize themselves with our policies.

Gratitude Cards - Before YMI breaks for summer, we provide an opportunity for mentees and mentors to share their "thanks!" by exchanging gratitude cards. Your Campus Coordinator will be distributing these in the next few weeks.

Total Solar Eclipse 2024 - Everyone in Fishers is excited for the rare event of being in the path of totality for the 2024 solar eclipse. Your Campus Coordinator should have distributed a pair of eclipse glasses so you can enjoy this event on April 8.

You can find more information about safety and road closures in Fishers HERE.

This month Wilbur Sutton, a five year mentor with YMI, will be sharing his tried-and-true mentoring tip as a guest columnist. This is a great activity for matches moving into high school as you transition from "friends" to "mentor."

"Several years ago I was introduced to a tool that helped me identify people who influenced me. After putting myself in the middle, I surrounded myself with names of influencers in my life. My next step was to list two or three attributes about them that impacted me. I pulled this out this year and tried it with my mentee. After he filled his out, I shared mine with him and we learned a lot about each other. I think it also helped him understand who he wanted to emulate and how he saw his own impact upon others."

RESOURCES

• Wilbur's most used resource - "Who Mentored You?"

• MENTOR has published a new study also titled Who Mentored You examining the importance of youth mentorship. YMI will be sharing statistics with you, but you can view a summary HERE.

Youth need 4-6 nonparental caring adults in their lives supporting them through their developmental years. Our students benefit greatly from the mentorship you provide them through the program, but it's a great activity to help them identify others in their life they impact or who have impacted them.