Harlem Ambassadors versus Telluride team for One to One, 3/2

28 Feb Harlem Ambassadors versus Telluride team for One to One, 3/2

[click “Play”, Susan talks with Jesse James McTigue and Rick Fusting]

Last week’s post on Telluride Inside… and Out described the fundraiser: the world-renowned Harlem Ambassadors take on a local team. The event, a slam dunk fun time, is scheduled to take place Wednesday, March 2, starting at 5:30 p.m., at the Telluride Middle School/High School.

This story is all about why we want to attend. It is all about the cause: One to One San Miguel Mentoring Program.

One to One pairs adult volunteers with kids in need of a stable adult in their lives. The nonprofit facilitates that need two primary ways: core mentoring or study buddy programs. Core mentoring “matches” meet  2-6 hours/week. Study buddies meet 2-4 hours a week. A partnership with the Stronghouse Studios matches interested kids with artists. Another initiative enrolls kids who have lost a loved one in an 6-week summer Art Therapy program to work with certified art therapist, Pam Hancock.

According to One to One staffer Jesse James McTigue, research from the Harvard School of Public Health’s Mentoring Project shows that 18 months after participating in a mentoring program, children with mentors were “53% less likely to skip school…. felt more competent about their ability to do well in school; reported more positive relationships with friends and parents; had better attitudes toward school and the future; and had better attitudes toward their family and communities,” (www.hsph.harvard.edu/research/chc/harvard-mentoring-project/index.html).

More than the impressive statistics about its program which One to One can easily rattle off, it is anecdotes from mentors, mentees and community members that speak the loudest.

“Mentors call us regularly with thoughtful hard questions as they agonize how to further support their mentees,” explained Jesse. “Businesses in town rally around our program by offering free equipment rentals, hot chocolates, theater tickets and scholarships to after school and summer programs. It is truly incredible to hear what the mentors do for each of the kids and really how the community rallies around the program. Interestingly, when I speak to the mentors, almost all say they get more out of it than the kids and they learn more than their mentee. And, at the end of the day, after whatever challenges the mentors may have faced or joys they may have experienced, they always finish with a knowing grin and the good feeling that only service can bring.”

The point of last year’s One to One fundraiser, Top Chef, was pumping One to One’s bottom line. This year’s event puts the emphasis on engaging more people in the community in its programs.

“With this event, we want to celebrate the community, the kids and especially our mentors. We really to get our name and our cause out there, make people think about us and hopefully participate in our organization in some capacity or other, whether it be becoming a donor, volunteering as a mentor, enrolling their child, or referring a child they know, to one of our program,” added Jesse.

To learn more, click the “play” button and listen to Jesse and board president Rick Fusting talk about One to One.