Samantha's Fundraiser for Mentor North

Hello and thank you for coming to my page to learn more about the wonderful work that happens through Mentor North.  I got involved with Mentor North because I wanted to have the opportunity to make a difference in a young person's life.  That was a huge part of why I was a teacher and a coach for so many years.  In the picture above, meet Maria - we were matched for over 5 years before she graduated.  Let me just say that again - Maria GRADUATED high school and is now enjoying her first college classes in pottery, writing and phycology - she's had a great interest in mental health and helping others - can't wait to see where her path leads her!  

I first met Maria during the pandemic as her academic tutor while the schools shifted to be online. Yikes, was that a tough transition - and we spent time nearly every school day doing homework that first year without video and over text messages. We spent many months where the most she would say was yes, no or okay. So when she finally felt comfortable enough to start opening up it became more and more clear how much she needed someone who believed in her, loved her and would always show up.  When the first school year ended, I really couldn't bare the thought of Maria not having someone to connect with - and so I told her as long as she would have me, I'd always be there for her. Even though she's graduated, we are still in touch - and she recently told me that she wrote a paper about our friendship for her first college writing class :)  I'm grateful to be along for any part of her journey.  

Looking back, some big moments have been when, after many months, Maria convinced her mom she needed to be vaccinated; she finally feel in love with reading; after dozens of walks together in her new neighborhood where I said hi and introduced us to anyone outside - she feels confident to walk and run on her own - mental health win big time!  We have been cooking together and building her recipe stash, along with making cards together - Maria loves sending cards, so I always bring her after school snacks and some cards to send - especially to her large family she doesn't get to see. We've also built her a calming kit so she had lots of tools to process her anxiety, and I can tell it's still making a difference.  I remember how hard being a teen was and how critical it was to have caring adults in my life - they made me believe in myself when I didn't.  I love that I've had the chance to do that for Maria - especially with all the extra challenges she has in her world compared to the one I grew up in.  

I'm asking for donations - really in any amount, so that Mentor North can work towards every youth in my community having a mentor.  Thanks for paying it forward to support our next generation - one meaningful mentorship at at time!  

For 2025 I am part of the Mentor North Power of 20 Campaign - with the goal to raise $20,000 and launch 20 new monthly donors all by Nov 20th.  With your recurring or one-time donation, Mentor North will work to ensure that every local youth has opportunities to gain life skills, try new things, develop meaningful interests and engage with their community through 1 on 1 mentorships. Mentoring, at its core, guarantees young people that someone cares about them, assures them they are not alone in dealing with day-to-day challenges, and makes them feel like they matter.  Being in a mentoring relationship builds social connection, improved self worth, confidence, mental and physical well-being for mentors and youth alike. 

Resilience Builders - Please consider becoming one of our Resilience Builder by choosing an automated monthly donation!  I like to think of it as a subscription to making the world a better place! More importantly, this is how we ensure that we have funding every month to do what our kids need most, no matter what is happening with shifting funding and priorities in our country.