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Nine Questions for a Nine-Year Mentor

January is National Mentoring Month, a time to focus on the needs, benefits, rewards, and opportunities in mentoring. In this month’s newsletter, we feature Mentor Trish Kelly who has been matched with Chloe for more than nine years.

Q: What’s the most memorable thing you’ve done together?
A: On two occasions, we attended shows at Century II. The first one was around Christmas time, and Chloe’s dad had bought her a pretty dress to wear. In the elevator, two other girls remarked on Chloe’s pretty dress, and I think that made her evening! The other show was “Under the Sea,” several years later, which made us both laugh because the “underwater girls” had to continuously move their arms and legs to maintain the look of being under water!

Q: In what ways have you seen your Protégé grow or change over the years?
A: Chloe has grown from a five-year-old to a young woman who will be 17 in January! Sadly, she has faced abandonment issues, but a parent has intervened to make her feel secure and loved in her home. This summer, she took the step of beginning her first paying job (Subway)! She is proud of that experience, and so am I!
Q: What’s your go-to regular activity?
A: WE GO EAT! Also, now that we are unable to visit as often as before (competing responsibilities), we try to go to Wichita to look at the latest pets in pet shops, and/or buy soft, pretty fabrics for making baby blankets. Chloe has tied MILES of knots for several dozens of blankets in the past five years or so!
Q: What has been the most rewarding thing about mentoring?
A: Just knowing that the Lord has allowed me to help a young person who needed me, and who has taught me a thing or two!

Q: Has your match enhanced or introduced your Protégé to the faith?

A: Yes, to some degree. Through the years, I have talked with her about many different subjects, and I (a mother of 3 sons!) have helped her learn life-lessons while growing up.
Q: What is one life lesson you’ve learned while being matched?
A: I’m reminded that God doesn’t work in just one way or through just one person. The little things should never be overlooked in the process of growing in grace.
Q: What have you struggled with the most?
A: Chloe has become her own person. She doesn’t always agree with me, of course, and our culture today frequently steals away innocence (PRAY!)
Q: What advice might you share with a new Mentor?
A: Keep an open mind – kids change through time. If one thing doesn’t work, it’s okay to dump it and try a different approach.
Q: Where do you see this match beyond graduation?
A: It is likely that we will stay in touch with each other, not on a regular schedule, perhaps, but I would very much miss those little “hi” words that come into my phone (from Chloe) routinely each week!