{"id":9819,"date":"2025-01-09T11:31:51","date_gmt":"2025-01-09T16:31:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/?p=9819"},"modified":"2025-01-09T17:13:06","modified_gmt":"2025-01-09T22:13:06","slug":"january-is-mentoring-month-get-involved","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/january-is-mentoring-month-get-involved\/","title":{"rendered":"January is Mentoring Month; Get Involved!"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs x126k92a\">\n<p dir=\"auto\"><span id=\"p2R_mc25\" class=\"markedContent\"><span dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"><em>*Original publication date: January 16, 2024. Updated: January 9, 2025.*<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"auto\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Happy Mentoring Month!<\/span><\/h3>\n<p dir=\"auto\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">As a core focus of YWCA Cortland, our youth mentoring programs, Bridges for Kids and GEMS, have been able to provide support, guidance, and opportunities to help Cortland area youth succeed in life and achieve their goals!<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a\">\n<div dir=\"auto\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">We thank all the incredible mentors who have come through the YWCA and formed long-lasting, stable, and supportive relationships with their mentees and all of the donors who have supported this program with donations of school supplies, food, holiday gifts, and much more.<\/span><\/div>\n<div dir=\"auto\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p dir=\"auto\"><a href=\"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/2024-1-2-Lobby-TV-Presentation-1-e1705419366912.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-9825 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/2024-1-2-Lobby-TV-Presentation-1-e1705419366912-268x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"268\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/2024-1-2-Lobby-TV-Presentation-1-e1705419366912-268x300.png 268w, https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/2024-1-2-Lobby-TV-Presentation-1-e1705419366912.png 604w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 268px) 100vw, 268px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p dir=\"auto\"><strong><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Here are some ways you can get involved and support the program in January:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li dir=\"auto\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Become a Mentor: <\/strong>We are always seeking mentors to pair with the children on our waiting list. Make an impact; <a style=\"color: #000000;\" href=\"https:\/\/forms.office.com\/pages\/responsepage.aspx?id=o-ewF-Y1H0GJYgi-lfhxFStvOaqiDCNEtdwCZr6dBgRUNEUxWTlXM0xLSVJCMjhKVllYQUdOR1dKSC4u\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">apply to become a mentor today!<\/a><\/span>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"auto\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">To mentor a child through the YWCA you must be 18 years or older, have access to a vehicle, be willing to commit to at least one year with the child, and attend training.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Eat at Doug&#8217;s Fish Fry on January 16<\/strong><\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Don\u2019t make dinner! Head to Doug\u2019s in Cortland any time from 3-8 pm in honor of National Mentoring Month. Mention you\u2019re there to support YWCA Cortland and Doug\u2019s, which will donate 20% of your meal proceeds to support our mentoring program<\/span>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"auto\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Make a Donation: <\/strong>Donate to the Mentoring general use fund so that we may provide enriching youth programming and supplement donated school supplies, food, and gifts to ensure every child is taken care of.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"auto\"><a href=\"https:\/\/secure.lglforms.com\/form_engine\/s\/9Zv2hk-7w4_laETE2HnvPw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Donate online<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li dir=\"auto\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Donate with a check: Make check payable to &#8220;YWCA Cortland&#8221; and mail it to 14 Clayton Ave., Cortland, NY 13045. To support this fundraising campaign, be sure to write &#8216;Mentoring 2025&#8217; in the memo line.<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"auto\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Donate with a credit card: Please call the YWCA front desk at (607) 753-9651 and mention the gift is for the 2025 Mentoring general use fund.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"auto\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Volunteer: <\/strong>Reach out to Mentoring Director Mindy Gardner at <a href=\"mailto:bridges@cortlandywca.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">bridges@cortlandywca.org<\/span><\/a> to volunteer throughout the year. Prepare food, distribute gifts &amp; school supplies, assist at community events, etc.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Does your child need a mentor?<\/strong> <a style=\"color: #000000;\" href=\"https:\/\/forms.office.com\/pages\/responsepage.aspx?id=o-ewF-Y1H0GJYgi-lfhxFStvOaqiDCNEtdwCZr6dBgRUMlVJUzJENUEwOVpPUVJEMTVDTEZQU0ozVi4u\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Enroll them in Bridges for Kids today!<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<div dir=\"auto\"><a href=\"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/2024-1-2-Lobby-TV-Presentation-2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-9841 \" src=\"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/2024-1-2-Lobby-TV-Presentation-2-e1705420900501.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"686\" height=\"240\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/2024-1-2-Lobby-TV-Presentation-2-e1705420900501.png 1440w, https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/2024-1-2-Lobby-TV-Presentation-2-e1705420900501-300x105.png 300w, https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/2024-1-2-Lobby-TV-Presentation-2-e1705420900501-1024x358.png 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 686px) 100vw, 686px\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<div dir=\"auto\"><\/div>\n<div dir=\"auto\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Bridges for Kids is an individual mentoring program that matches a trained adult volunteer with youth ages 5-12 looking for a trusted adult to help them succeed. The mentor meets with the child once a week. Mentors provide the one-on-one attention so crucial to building self-esteem in our local youth. In addition, they offer enrichment activities designed to increase the child\u2019s self-confidence, resiliency skills, and background knowledge. Activities range from cooking nutritious meals at the YWCA to sledding in Beaudry Park. The importance of education is stressed, as is healthy exercise, creative outlets, and new experiences such as museums and sporting events.<\/span><\/div>\n<div dir=\"auto\"><\/div>\n<div dir=\"auto\"><em>*Content included in this post was accurate on the date it was published. All information and pricing are subject to change without notice.*<\/em><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>*Original publication date: January 16, 2024. Updated: January 9, 2025.* Happy Mentoring Month! As a core focus of YWCA Cortland, our youth mentoring [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":9859,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,7,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9819","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-announcements","category-general","category-recent-news","has_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9819","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9819"}],"version-history":[{"count":28,"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9819\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12244,"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9819\/revisions\/12244"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9819"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9819"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cortlandywca.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9819"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}