By Stephen B. Wilson, YWCA Community Relations Committee Member<\/p>\n
Part I<\/p>\n
Mindy Gardner, a bright, smiling, energetic young woman, sits in her small second-floor office at the Cortland YWCA as she describes her position as Director of Mentoring Programs for two unique programs for children.\u00a0 Ms. Gardner\u2019s Bachelor\u2019s degree in Psychology with an emphasis in Child Development made her the prime candidate for the position of nursery school teacher, which she assumed nine years ago.\u00a0 In recent years, however, she has taken the reigns of two signature YW programs for children:\u00a0 Bridges for Kids and GEMS (G<\/u>irls E<\/u>mpowered, M<\/u>otivated, and S<\/u>uccessful).<\/p>\n
Bridges for Kids is a one-on-one mentoring program for boys and girls ages five to twelve.\u00a0 Throughout its 39-year history it has served the developmental needs of disadvantaged children from the city and county of Cortland.\u00a0 As Mindy describes it: \u201cThese are kids who may come from low-income families or from stressed homes or who may have some sort of barrier that hinders their development.\u00a0 We have some kids with learning disabilities or behavioral issues who need that extra one-on-one attention.\u00a0 Each problem is unique.\u201d\u00a0 There have been some children in the program who, because of their neighborhoods\u2019 unsafe conditions, may not have been allowed out of their homes. Thanks to the thoughtful supervision of their dedicated mentors, however, they\u2019ve had the life-altering opportunities to go each week to museums, sports events, shows, concerts, and civic presentations.<\/p>\n
From Mindy\u2019s perspective, one of the rewarding aspects of the Bridges program is the high degree of commitment and dedication of the adult volunteers who serve as mentors to these children.\u00a0 She says, \u201cHalf of the mentors are college students, which is great because of their youth and energy; however, they inevitably leave.\u00a0 The other half are community members, which is wonderful because they stick around and know the area.\u201d\u00a0 When I asked what the saddest part of the job is, she answered that because of the lack of sufficient numbers of available mentors there is a waiting list of boys and girls hoping to join the program.<\/p>\n
When I asked how the mentor\/child connection was determined, Mindy said that each mentor was \u201cmatched\u201d to a specific child according to that child\u2019s needs and personality.\u00a0 \u201cI do an interview process with the mentor and mentee, and I try to match them up with the appropriate personality blend.\u201d\u00a0 She also indicated that when the child \u201cages out\u201d of the Bridges program, the child and mentor may often continue their relationship for several years on an informal basis.<\/p>\n
As one might expect, parents and guardians are \u201cthrilled\u201d with the changes they see in their children\u2019s growth after a brief time in the Bridges program.\u00a0 As Ms. Gardner says, \u201cMost parents or guardians are excited and willing to work with the mentors.\u00a0 They really want what\u2019s best for their child, including things that may be temporarily beyond their reach.\u00a0 Bridges becomes one big family of the parents, the kids, and even the children on the waiting list.\u00a0 They gather together each month here at the YW for things like pizza parties, family swimming, and movie nights; we do it all for them.\u201d<\/p>\n
When I asked if Bridges for Kids was the equivalent of Big Brothers and Sisters, Mindy confirmed that larger cities like Syracuse, Ithaca and Binghamton have those programs, but Cortland is too small to qualify for them.\u00a0 Bridges is the only program here that provides the individual mentoring that is so critical for the nurturing of disadvantaged children.\u00a0 Ms. Gardner stressed that the YW has an urgent need for new volunteers to give of their time for these deserving children.\u00a0 The only \u201cqualifications\u201d needed for mentoring are that each person must be at least 18 years old and have a desire to help.<\/p>\n
Help is also rendered to the program by each person who becomes a member of the YWCA Cortland.\u00a0 The fee for membership is a large part of the \u201cbaseline\u201d for the operating budget for the YW and is shared by all of the programs and services offered by the organization.<\/p>\n