“Building Relationships for Peace: The Mentoring Connection,” is the title of a mentoring summit to be held on Sunday, Jan. 20, at 3 p.m. at St. Richard Church, 1501 Grand Ave. The summit, sponsored by the Racine Interfaith Coalition (RIC), will feature 17 local organizations explaining their programs and their needs for mentors.
RIC customarily holds prayer vigils at murder sites in Racine. Participants and sponsors often asked, “Is there something else we can be doing?” The summit is a partial answer to that question.
Interviews with individual RIC members and community leaders revealed that supporting youth and teens through mentoring projects is a priority. Mentoring often makes a difference in a person’s life and “builds relationships for peace.” No matter where we live in Racine, violence affects us all. We need to work together to address this community problem
At the summit, participants will be able to: learn about mentoring and mentoring needs in Racine, visit with groups in need of mentors and join a mentoring group.
A chart, showing the needs and requirements of various organizations, will be shared. There is a mentoring connection for nearly everyone: long-term and short-term commitments; age-specific programs; religious- or legal-based mentoring; team, individual or group mentoring; mentoring for academic achievement or to reduce anti-social behavior and develop specific skills.
Keynote speakers are Hector Vergudo and Joseph Holguin from Homeboy Industries in Los Angeles, the largest gang diversion program in the U.S. They will explain how mentoring changed their lives, moving them from violence and aimlessness to productive lives of peace. Hector says he “owes his rehabilitation to community elders and educators, who gave him his first real chance at life.”
As Joseph’s bio says, “he didn’t know any other way of life, and had a lack of positive guidance” before his association with Homeboy. The summit is open to everyone in the community; plenty of free parking is available. For more information, contact the Racine Interfaith Coalition at 635-9532.
No comments:
Post a Comment