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Papers begin Mentors Matter campaign

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By Kevin Aldridge Updated 8:10 AM Monday, February 1, 2010

BUTLER COUNTY — Whether it was the teacher who pushed us to achieve, the neighbor who offered an encouraging word, the coach who provided us with discipline, the boss who trained us to succeed in our careers, the pastor who counseled us, or a parent who supported and cared, we’ve all had someone in our lives we consider to be our mentor.

Having that right person whose brain we can pick, who can lend an ear to listen and who will point us in the right direction is key to our development as human beings. This is especially true when it comes to our youth.

That’s why the Middletown Journal and the Hamilton JournalNews have partnered with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Butler County on a campaign called, “Mentors Matter,” to encourage mentorship in our communities.

There are currently 189 children on the waiting list for mentors in Butler County, according to Big Brothers Big Sisters. And there are countless others not connected with the agency in need of positive adult role models who can teach them how to become productive, responsible citizens.

But Big Brothers Big Sisters reports that there is a vacuum when it comes to volunteer mentors, especially for young black males. This is where we believe the Mentors Matter campaign can have an impact.

Starting today, the Middletown Journal and the Hamilton JournalNews will profile a child from our area in search of a mentor once a week. These stories will give you insight into these children’s lives and families and explain why having a mentor is important to them. We will also tell the success stories of current mentors and the bonds they’ve formed.

The newspapers will tell you how you can get involved, and it is our hope that these stories will touch someone’s heart and move them to take a child under their wing.

It can be easy sometimes to sit back and complain about the attitudes and actions of today’s youth. But if all we choose to do is sit back, is the problem really with our youth or with us?

Ghandi once said, “Be the change you want to see in the world.”

Winston Churchill offered this saying: “We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.”

We ask you to consider where your life might be today without that special mentor. We would then encourage you get to involved.

Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2584  or kaldridge@coxohio.com.

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