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I am the luckiest man in the world. The Lord has been so good to me. I feel obligated to give something back. Several years ago I began looking for a way to make a substantial difference in someone’s life, someone not as fortunate as I.
The Lord sent me an angel in the form of Kate Hoffman, the director of Center Point Mentor Program. As she addressed my Sunday school class, Kate explained that Jesus spent most of his time with the general population, not the wealth and powerful of his day. He humbled himself out of service to others, to those most in need, on a personal level. Center Point Mentor Program offered me the opportunity to provide service to others who need it most, our children. Realizing the potential of mentoring, I quickly signed up. This year marks my third year mentoring three boys. It has been and continues to be one of the most rewarding experiences of my life.
Center Point provides each of us an extraordinary opportunity to help children of all ages reach their maximum potential. A young child or teenager having difficulty keeping pace with his or her peers in academics or having behavioral issues suffers a devastating loss of self-esteem.
This loss makes it difficult for students to be successful in school, and many drop out before obtaining a high school diploma. The amount of wasted potential can be measured in drop-out rates, poverty and lack of productivity in the community.
Through mentoring, we can turn this situation around by providing the most valuable gift anyone can give, our time. Needs vary among children and few of us are experts (especially me), but it is amazing what a little attention, encouragement, discipline, and a good example can do if applied on a consistent, long term basis. Just an hour a week can change the life of a child.
I am a card-carrying member of the baby boomer generation, the most prosperous time to be alive in the history of mankind.
We baby boomers need to remember that it is because of the sacrifices of others that we inherited and benefited from such a long period of growth. Our mentors were people of real character, a generation surviving the Depression and World War II. It’s time to realize we are here by the grace of God, and the efforts of others who came before us.
As this Christmas approaches, and your thoughts turn to giving, consider giving of your time this year. More than a toy or a turkey, our children need a mentor like you, someone just like the mentor that guided you through your difficult times.
It’s time to give back and mentoring will give each of us the opportunity to help another person in need. One by one we can rebuild the character of this great country, by passing on the lessons taught to us.
Our parents taught by example, like their parents did them. Jesus was the ultimate teacher by example; celebrate his birth by making time for others. This country needs it more than ever. Mentor now!
Joe G. Mayfield
Gainesville