Elodie from Space Of Her Own

Rebecca and Elodie met through the SOHO program back in 2014. On the first day of the program, they were sitting together and immediately had a great connection. Rebecca is from El Salvador originally and is very interested in other cultures and Elodie is from France and loves to share her love for international travel. Rebecca quickly asked Elodie to talk to her about her country, cultural differences and what language people speak in France. Elodie also wanted to find out about Rebecca’s original country of El Salvador. A friendship quickly built from there.

Each Thursday evening, they met through the SOHO program and worked on art projects together, including painting, making pillows, ceramics, and other projects with the objective to create a space for Rebecca in her home. At the end of the program, Rebecca was sharing a room with her brother and made her “corner” her own space with crafts she had worked on all year long with Elodie along with some new fun things they bought together.

After two years of starting the program, Elodie and Rebecca have a close friendship and see each other on a regular basis to see movies, go to coffee, do some shopping or just talk about school, life, and everything in between. As Elodie says, “Rebecca has brought so much more to my life than I had ever imagined. We have a very strong bond that I plan to cherish for life”. Elodie was so happy when Rebecca told her that she had decided to take French in middle school and promised Rebecca to take her to Europe when she graduates from high school.

This article was previously published in the Alexandria Gazette,  http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/news/2017/feb/10/mentor-week-cross-cultural-connection/

The Untouchables Open House

Like most evenings after school, Charles Houston Rec Center in northern Old Town was a bustling place last Thursday.  In classrooms, youth engaged in dance classes, sports, and advisory programs.  Elementary school girls chatted with visitors while waiting for their friends to arrive.  And male mentors and mentees gathered for their weekly The Untouchables meeting.  

The Untouchables is one of Alexandria's oldest mentoring programs.  Founded in 1988, it has for 29 years provided guidance and support for young African-American men in the Parker-Gray neighborhood.  Many of the mentors in The Untouchables today were once mentees in the program, and came back to help the youth in their community in the same ways older men had helped them.  When asked why they came every week, mentors and mentees alike shared the sentiment that The Untouchables helped teach them how to be good people and live their lives to the fullest.  

Guests came by to watch the program from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.  Mentors and mentees took turns taking the floor and working on their public speaking skills.  Following the program, guests, mentors, and mentees shared a meal together of salad, mac and cheese, cake, and homemade banana pudding.  

After dinner, The Untouchables received a visit from the Mayor of Alexandria, Allison Silberberg, who shared her thoughts on the importance of mentoring and how lucky the city is to have programs such as this one.  

Space Of His Own Open House

In the photo above, Kyle shows the Space Of His Own group how to finish a nail into wood, and prepare the project the boys are working on - a shodowbox - for painting.  

The sound of hammers ring out from the workshop classroom at George Washington Middle School.  Not an unusual noise, except for the fact that it's 6 p.m., long after school has ended.  But the shop teacher Kyle remains, acting as instructor and program leader of Space Of His Own.

Every Tuesday, 5th grade boys gather to meet with their mentor, learn life skills, have dinner, and engage in construction projects.  As a part of Alexandria Mentoring Month, AMP hosted an open house yesterday, where interested guests could stop by and see what Space Of His Own is all about.  

One visitor was matched with a young man whose mentor could not make it this week, and quickly stepped up to the task of holding the nearly completed shadowbox while the student finished hammering in the nails.  

Space Of His Own is open to observation any Tuesday - contact sarah.maroney@alexandriava.gov to plan your visit!  

Wright to Read Open House

Wright to Read held an event for Alexandria Mentoring Month last Thursday.  Those interested in mentoring came to the Wright to Read office in Old Town to eat snacks, talk to program staff, and hear from a current mentor.  Wright to Read was founded in 1979 by Frank and Betty Wright, and has been connecting caring volunteers with Alexandria students ever since.  Tutor/mentors meet with students once a week to work on literacy.  Wright to Read plans a weekend activity once a month for mentors and mentees to go on.  There are currently over 100 students being served by Wright to Read.  Some have been with their tutor/mentor for a decade!  

Wright to Read holds an orientation session once a month.  For those interested, start your application here. 

A message from Casa Chirilaga: Kids Club members

Peter Tomaselli of Wright to Read

FROM PETER:

As a public servant for the City of Alexandria, I have always taken great pride in providing exemplary customer service to the local citizens of this city. The city government has always had a strong belief in providing these high levels of customer service at all costs. They, also, have had a strong belief in finding ways to ensure that our youth of tomorrow succeed in life.

I would be fortunate enough to get my opportunity towards making a positive impact on the youth of tomorrow when I decided to attend an information session hosted by the Alexandria Mentoring Partnership. I learned about all the admirable programs that were in need of strong, positive mentors. Out all of those fascinating programs, I would end up being drawn towards the Wright to Read program. This program intrigued me the most primarily because I knew about the valuable importance of reading, especially, as it related to academic success and attaining further knowledge.

When I decided to become a mentor with the Wright to Read program, I really didn’t know what to expect. At first, I felt a tad anxious because I realized I would be responsible for a young individual’s success in meeting all desired reading goals. I, also, realized that I would have a strong hand in this young individual’s maturation process. So, the thought of all this became rather overwhelming to me. Fortunately, there was no reason for me to think or feel this way because I realized that I would not be alone in this mentoring process. Wright to Read willingly provided me all the tools needed to succeed in their program. Plus, I was fortunate enough to have a great supporting cast in my mentee’s family who were willing to accommodate me in any manner possible because they truly cared about the overall success of my mentee, Sean.

Sean has been such a pleasure to have as a mentee. I truly appreciate his strong effort and persistence in striving to improve in all facets of literacy. I am really not surprised that Sean has progressed in the manner that he has because he has, definitely, put in all the hard work during our sessions at the library and at home with his family. Sean is the main reason why I am even being considered for Wright to Read’s Mentor of the Month. This nomination consideration is a testament of the nearly two years of hard work that Sean and I have embarked together. I am very excited to see with what the future will hold for Sean.

FROM SEAN:

My mentor, Peter, and I read every week at Beatley Library. We met when I was a second grader and continued meeting during the summer when school was out. I like meeting with Peter to improve my reading. I have learned to improve my fluency in reading. I have also increased my reading speed and I don’t sound choppy anymore. We read mostly books that interests me. We have ready anywhere from poetry to fiction to non-fiction books.

We sometimes meet outside of our sessions on the weekends as well. We like going to the pool and having family dinners. The best day was when my mentor met me at the renaissance festival for my birthday.

Peter deserves to be the Mentor of the Month, because we have worked as a team to improve each week. He always pushes me to go to the next level. The Wright to Read program has helped me read over the level I am supposed to be. I truly consider my mentor a big brother. Thank you Wright to Read!

This article was previously published in the Alexandria Gazette, http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/news/2017/jan/13/helping-shape-future-alexandria-mentor-month/

Casa Chirilagua Open House

Yesterday, we continued our celebration of Alexandria Mentoring Month with a mentor recruitment event at Casa Chirilagua.  Guests enjoyed coffee and dulces while listening to one Casa family talk about their experience with mentoring.  Mentoring Director Adriana and Local Leader Leydy asked Jose*, his mother Marta*, and his mentor Todd questions about mentoring.

Todd spoke about how mentoring was a lot more natural than he had anticipated, and doesn't require lots of planning or preparing before each session.  Jose's favorite moment with Todd was when they went to Cirque De Soleil Kurios for Jose's birthday.  Marta noted that since getting a mentor, J has been reading more, and she is very happy with having Todd as Jose's mentor.  This year, Todd is most looking forward to going ice skating, while Jose is excited about playing soccer together. The entire interview was conducted in English and Spanish, with participants either speaking in both or Adriana translating.  At the end, guests asked questions, and expressed their gratitude for the wonderful work that Casa Chirilagua and its staff, volunteers, and families are doing!

Read more about Todd and Jose in their Mentor of the Month article in the Alexandria Gazette: http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/news/2017/jan/27/mentor-month/

Our next open house is Thursday, January 19, at Wright to Read (414 N. Washington St.)

*Names changed for privacy

Alexandria Mentoring Month!!!

On January 10, January was declared Alexandria Mentoring Month at the monthly city council meeting.  Mayor Allison Silberberg announced the agenda item, noting that council members all wore blue in support of Alexandria's mentoring programs.  Councilman John T. Chapman read the proclamation declaring Alexandria Mentoring Month.  Representatives from The BRYCE Project, Community Lodgings, Space Of Her Own, The Untouchables, and Wright to Read were present to celebrate the proclamation.  

Watch the entire meeting here. 

RARE Open House

Nearly every day after classes end at Francis Hammond Middle School, 6th grade students meet with volunteers to practice math problems, work on grammar, learn code, and more.  This is RARE: a tutoring/group mentoring program sponsored by The Campagna Center.

Yesterday AMP continued its celebration of National Mentoring Month with its another Open House.  Community members interested in volunteering or just curious about youth programs were invited to drop in on RARE and talk to the volunteers, students, and staff involved.

Above: a volunteer helps a student with her language arts worksheet. Right: RARE students wrote down what they love about coming to RARE.

BRYCE Project Open House

Community Service and Youth Enrichment are two of the tenants of the BRYCE Project.  Started four year ago, BRYCE meets on Monday evenings, where high school girls and volunteers gather in a safe space to do service projects.  Members also meet for weekend events.  This past Saturday, BRYCE traveled to the Microsoft store in Pentagon City to take classes on coding and Microsoft Office.

In honor of National Mentoring Month, the Alexandria Mentoring Partnership joined with BRYCE to set up an "Open House" by tabling outside the Microsoft store, and inviting mall goers to go in and see what the mentoring program was up to.