A Mentoring Story
Gary wright, one of our newest mentors, looked at his watch and notified his coworker that he needed to leave. He left work about fifteen minutes early to make plenty of time to pick up his mentee’s Little Caesars Pizza that he had requested along with an Orange Crush.
Waiting patiently in the hallway, he held their pizza and Orange Crush as the delightful aroma of slightly burnt crust, layers of cheese, and pepperoni caught the attention of every child passing by. You could hear the kids thinking, “Who is that for?”
We ran into each other in the parking lot as he was leaving and he shared with me, “I’m truly enjoying this but I wonder if I’m really making a difference. Can I really help change the life of a hurting child just by eating lunch with him once a week?” Little did he realize that change had already begun.
At that same moment a commotion had begun to surround the large Orange Crush that towered over the other children’s half pint of lukewarm milk. “That’s not fair! How did you get that Orange Crush? How come you get to eat pizza every week? Who is that guy who eats with you? Does he come all the time? Can I eat with you? Will he bring us an Orange Crush too?”
The child ran his hands lovingly over the bottle before slowly and boastfully unscrewing the lid, tipping back to savor the orange fizz that held the admiration of all the other students. And after he had wiped the excess off with his forearm, and with a big smile, he started to answer their questions.
“My mentor brought it for me. No. We don’t eat pizza every week. Last week he brought me a cheeseburger and fries from McDonalds. Next week he’s bringing me some tacos from Taco Bell.” His smile only broadened when the children opposed this obvious injustice.
When talking to the teacher several weeks later she commented, “He always holds onto his bottle as long as he can to ensure that every other child comments on it. He holds on until I make him throw it away in the classroom.” While, to us it is just an empty bottle that would get tossed in the garbage, to him it’s a tangible reminder that he is special and sought out by someone. While he may have wondered for years, “Am I special and valuable?” that Orange Crush would remind him that he was!
Thank you to all of our mentors and donors who invest. You are not only changing the life of a child but the future of a spouse and parent. I love you guys!
Steve Seaton
*Thank you Gary Wright for joining the team. And YES you are making a difference!