Brad Owen
Imagine 15 million young Americans between the ages of 10-18 standing in line, waiting for positive role models. Now imagine that they are standing behind 2.5 million other kids who already have a responsible adult in their lives to look up to. This is what it is called the MENTORING GAP, and we need to close it. Many of these kids who are waiting face incredible difficulties and come from one-parent families, were born to teen parents, live in poverty, or will never graduate from high school. Their futures and their lives are at risk. Mentoring has been proven to work against these types of odds, and provides a positive, rewarding experience for everyone involved. Think about it�99% of the people who have volunteered as a mentor would recommend it to others. That is an incredible vote of confidence for something that involves a minimal amount of time and money, and has a maximum impact on the lives of both the mentors and the mentees.
This past January, America celebrated the second annual National Mentoring Month under the guidance of the Harvard Mentoring Project and MENTOR/National Mentoring Partnership. Scores of US Congress members, governors and lieutenant governors, mayors, government agencies, media companies and nonprofit agencies across the country joined in calling on the country to step up and support mentoring and help close the GAP. Looking back at January, one of the brightest moments came during President Bush𠏋 State of the Union address to the nation, in which he called on Congress to provide $450 million over three years to recruit and train over 1 million mentors. This is a serious investment in our future, so we should step up and help the president and the country meet the goal of 1 million more mentors.
Research has shown that mentoring programs can be a powerful tool in reducing drug abuse and youth violence, while greatly enhancing a young person𠏋 prospects for leading a healthy and productive life. In fact, most successful people say that they had a mentor along the way who guided and encouraged them, like US Secretary of State Colin Powell. The key, however, is community support and individual involvement. Mentoring cannot happen without strong local and national endorsement at many levels, and an adult who is willing to give of their time and themselves for a young person.
Varying degrees of involvement are available, from joining the governor𠏋 Washington Reading Corps program to Big Brothers or Big Sisters. I urge all Washington State residents to consider spending some of their time and energy to become a mentor. You can learn about the many programs in your area by visiting the MENTOR/Washington State Mentoring Partnership website at www.mentoring.org and entering your zip code, or by calling 877-301-4557. Let𠏋 close the mentoring gap and give our young people the chance for a positive future!
Lieutenant Governor Brad Owen of State of Washington
(February 12, 2003)
