Mentor Coordinator Report
Stories & Quotes To Share:
The Next Step
Lynden Middle School’s 8th graders are preparing for high school, and a key benefit of our program is that existing mentor-mentee matches can transition with them. Recently, one mentee approached me, eager to continue meeting their mentor next fall. Their excitement was clear as they began aligning their new high school schedule with their mentor’s work hours.
Aim and Game
The annual end of the year field trip for Lynden Middle School Be the One was a trip to Aim and Game in Ferndale. The trip went great! I collected a few funny stories over the trip:
Yes Sir!
While getting on the bus, I told students our safety rules and expectations. After covering the basics, I told them, “Just do what I say, and we will get through this with no problems.” Immediately, a couple of students threw up a mock salute and yelled “Yes, Sir!” I think they might have been making fun of me……
No Mercy
Aim and Game has loads of activities for mentor pairs! Video games, pinball machines, axe throwing and board games are all available for the matches to use. The one activity that went overlooked by a few matches was the nerf arena, a room where people can shoot nerf guns at each other. It was here where I witnessed a mentee run up and fall over, dropping her nerf gun and rolling around laughing. The mentor ran over and asked, “Are you alright?” The mentee replied that she was okay. The mentor said “Good” and proceeded to shoot a nerf dart into her chest, marking her as out for the game.
Old Man
A match was competing against each other on an old arcade machine. Both the mentor and the mentee had never been to an arcade before, so they were both learning on the fly. With each of them having extensive video game experience, it was a battle for the ages. This time, youth prevailed. The mentor and mentee shook hands, and the mentee said “Better luck next year, old man.” Prompting laughs and demands for a rematch.
Highlights:
May is the final month of Be the One meetings! All the matches have ended for the year and the end of the year field trip went well. As the school year and the program wind down, preparations for next year are in full swing. I am setting up the waitlist, lining up mentors, and making reports for the matches that are moving up to the High School. I am still in need of female mentors for next year, I currently have 4 female mentors signed up for 12 students on the waitlist!
• 28 current matches
• 2 Closed Matches
• 11 students on the waitlist
• 4 Students with Permission Slips out
Number of Current Matches: 28
Submitted by Sammuel Van Kirk – vankirks@lynden.wednet.edu