Eric's Blog Post for the week of March 15-19

As mentioned in our last post, we are featuring the work of guest blogger, Eric Hawley, from Concordia University.

Here's his post from last week:


I would like to say that being able to witness the mentors’ and mentees’ interaction with each other is beautiful. I get the rare opportunity to see the connections between kids and adults grow. The stories that I hear of YEARS of commitment from some of these mentors is astounding. These kid’s lives are truly being changed.

I have to apologize to everyone for not updating you on last week’s mentoring session. I was in Texas on my spring break. To dispel any rumors about Texas, people do not go everywhere on horse back; they own cars. Now I’m back, and I’ve got great news to report about an upcoming mentoring event.

This past Monday was different than any other because Dan was interviewing mentors and mentees for a VIDEO he’s putting together. On Tuesday March 30th, the mentoring program will be hosting a Mentor & Mentee Appreciation Dinner here at Circle Urban for all the mentors and their matches. During the dinner, Dan is going to show this video showing what all the mentors and mentees had to say. What a great way to further encourage people in the understanding that they are not alone.

Being a mentor can be difficult and enjoyable all at the same time. Knowing that there are other mentors going through the same experience as you is comforting. One can be easily discouraged because a conversation isn’t going the way they had planned. But when mentors talk to one another about these frustrations, they then have the opportunity to build one another up. Knowing you are not alone is encouraging.

When watching the video clips, I’m sure we could submit the whole thing to Bill Cosby’s “Kids Say the Darndest Things.” In those humorous moments is where the beauty of these relationships lies. The kids are being vulnerable by sharing their stories with the camera about their mentors. These kids are truly being impacted by their mentors because adults are sharing their lives with kids, and ultimately telling them “you are not alone.”

Everyone was asked the same questions, and I bet there will be similar answers. Not because anybody had a script telling them the “right” answers, but because many people are being effected in the same way, mentors and mentees alike. These adults give an hour of their week (sometimes more) to show their mentee he/she is valuable. Some of these mentors know one another; some do not, but all the mentors have a common thread running between them: love for their mentee.

The video will be showing at the dinner on the 30th, and who knows, maybe Mr. Cosby will be free that night.

The One to One Mentoring Initiative reached another milestone this school year. In addition to our 5-year program anniversary in October 2009, we matched our 50th mentoring pair on Wednesday, March 10, 2010. While that is an exciting number to reach, the best part about the program is to know that there are mentors and mentees from the first few years of the program who are still matched today. The quality of the mentoring matches that exist far outweighs the quantity any day. We hope that match #50 will last for years to come as well.

We continue to be thrilled and excited to be a part of what God is doing in the Mentoring Program and through Circle Urban Ministries. He is faithful in bringing committed, Christian adults to bless the children on our waiting list, with over 20 new mentors applying to the program this school year and most of them matched with a child already. With the least amount of staff coordinating the most amount of matches in the history of the program, God also continues to do a lot with a little. Week in and week out, we see the sustaining power of our heavenly Father provide for us in ways that only He is able to work out. The circumstances He's brought us through, large and small, frequently remind us that it is not by our strength or ability, but by God's graciousness that this program continues to function.

Please continue to pray with us for God to raise up men and women that are walking with him to be matched with the children still on our waiting list.

Eric Hawley is a student at Concordia University who's interning here at Circle. He recently spent a busy Monday afternoon and evening taking time to walk around the facility and observe some of what was happening in Mentoring and College Readiness. Here's what he had to say:

At 4’6”, dunking a basketball isn’t very likely. Two elementary-age boys I observed in Circle’s gym didn’t care about the likelihood; they just wanted to get up there to hang on the rim. Ricky and Eric started stacking gym mats in order to jump higher. After jumping off the 3 foot stack of padded mats, the idea of hanging on the rim was forgotten amidst the fun of knocking the stack over. Eric would pretend like he was stuck under the scattered mats and Ricky would attempt to “help” by sitting on the pile, only adding to the fun. While the two boys are enjoying good, clean fun, their mentors, Adam and Jake, are with them.

As volunteers mentors, Adam and Jake really care about these boys. It’s easy to tell by the way each interacts with his mentee but more importantly by Adam and Jake’s commitment to their mentees. Both mentors attend Wheaton college which makes this weekly trek to volunteer an hour and half roundtrip. They’ve been connected to our mentoring program for a year and half now. Ricky and Eric don’t know how far away Wheaton is, or how busy being in college can be; they just understand Adam and Jake truly care for them. That’s what they need in their lives; that’s what we all need in our lives, to know we are loved. Ricky and Eric are loved by their mentors, but more importantly, they are loved by God.

As I walk the halls of Circle Urban Ministries I see a lot of activity. Kids in the afterschool program, staff members working, and mentors hanging out with their mentees. It’s easy to find a mentor and mentee hanging out, but the smell of baking brownies drew me to the kitchen. In the kitchen I met Cindy, a woman from First Presbyterian Church in River Forest, and her mentee, Lakendra. Cindy’s been matched with Lakendra for about a year, and she’s been introducing Lakendra to one of her passions, baking. Lakendra hasn’t had an opportunity to bake at home. How wonderful it is that Cindy can introduce Lakendra to a whole new experience. While they wait for the brownies to bake, they continue work on a puzzle Cindy brought from home. Conversations about school and home take place as the edge pieces are sorted out. Lakendra was shy as I tried to talk to her, but to Cindy she’s much more open.

Cindy’s commitment to Lakendra is clearly evident. Cindy wants to give the best to Lakendra because she genuinely cares about her. Mondays are a special time; Lakendra is able to experience something she can’t anywhere else: Cindy and baking. I was invited to come back and snack on the brownies when they were ready. I was definitely coming back.

The day continues and so does the food. A potluck dinner is scheduled for the College Readiness program. This program is designed to provide kids with exposure opportunities and leadership development that will help them to be equipped for college with a promising vision for their futures. This is so important because in this community, most kids don’t go to college. Many kids aren’t even encouraged to THINK about college.

At the potluck I met Nichole and her daughter Shakeea, Byron and his son Bill, and Jamar with his grandma and mom. The meeting is about what College Readiness will be doing in the near future, and where they’re at currently.

Dan, the program coordinator, informed everyone that the students’ school teachers would be cooperating with the program to help keep kids accountable to completing homework and excellent school behavior. Rewards for good grades and behavior will equal College Readiness Bucks ($). Kids could then spend this reward money on items in the store Dan set up. Items to include: pencils, folders, gift cards, mp3 players and more.

All the parents really wanted to be there to help their kids. Dan covered more ways College Readiness is going to help, as parents soaked in all the information they could. It’s easy to see the love the parents have for their kids. Even if the kids don’t yet really understand why it’s important, the parents want their kids to be successful. This program will help kids prepare for college, but also gives parent and child something to work on together.

Mentoring, After school, College Readiness, Work, and more are all going on here at Circle Urban Ministries. Lives are being changed, not by us, but through us by faith in action.