Why I mentor: Beth Finn, manager of retail services at Staples

January is National Mentoring Month, and we are highlighting a number of perspectives on mentoring, events, and ways you can get involved in the field. Today’s blog is a Q&A with Staples’ Manager of Retail Services, Beth Finn, a mentor to an 18-year-old high school senior at the John Andrew Mazie Memorial Foundation in Framingham. Staples is supporting a statewide mentoring public awareness campaign for the third consecutive year.

• Why is mentoring important to you?

I have personally benefited from being mentored, and I continue to benefit every day. Learning from others is one of the best ways to grow!

• What is the most rewarding experience you’ve had mentoring?

My mentee and I love spending time volunteering, hanging out and having fun. Here are some highlights: creating cards for soldiers and working up a sweat cleaning the Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary at the Audubon Society in Natick. Through our mentoring program, we need to complete a number of volunteer activities, and even though we had volunteered already, we were short one volunteer event with an approaching deadline…so we did an impromptu park cleanup one Saturday. We picked up trash and loved it! Both of us really enjoy doing these activities together. Also, my mentee and I attended the Mentoring Night at Fenway last year. It was Dianna’s (my mentee) first time at Fenway, so it was great to bring her. The highlight came after the game. We took one of those bicycle pulled carts back to my car. We laughed hysterically as we sped around corners in Boston on the back of that bike. Neither of us had been on one before and we really loved it.

• What piece of advice do you find most helpful for the people you mentor?

Work hard at things that will allow you more options in life. For example, if you put hard work and effort into school, it can pay off by giving you more options on where you go to college. It might open up opportunities for scholarships and will ultimately put you in the driver’s seat of your life.

• What advice would you give to other adults looking to become mentors?

If you are thinking about it, just do it. You don’t have to be perfect, you don’t have to be their “parent,” you just have to be there. It is pretty amazing to be a part of and have an impact on another person’s life.

• Who has been a mentor in your life? What are some of the lessons they taught you?

My best mentor ever, hands down, is Dave Larochelle. I was “assigned” Dave as a mentor on my first day of work at Staples, and we have continued to meet on a regular basis for the last six years. Dave helped me transition from college student (extraordinaire) to Staples corporate office employee. He has patiently listened to, channeled, and encouraged my enthusiasm during my career here. Dave has helped me through challenging work situations, encouraged me to push harder, and at times, he just sits and listens to me. The best things Dave has shared with me is his perspective and time. I have learned so much from just listening to him share his experiences and how he has worked through obstacles. Also, Dave was awarded the Staples “Silver Stapler” award.

• What inspired you to become a mentor?

My experience with Dave.

• What mentoring programs have you been involved in?

The John Andrew Mazie Memorial Foundation.

Why I mentor: Katelyn Biancamano, integration coordinator at Staples

January is National Mentoring Month, and we are highlighting a number of perspectives on mentoring, events, and ways you can get involved in the field. Today’s blog is a Q&A with Staples’ Integration Coordinator, Katelyn Biancamano, a mentor at the John Andrew Mazie Memorial Foundation in Framingham. Katelyn’s mentee is a Framingham High School student who she has mentored for almost two years. Staples is supporting a statewide mentoring public awareness campaign for the third consecutive year.

1. Why is mentoring important to you?
   I began mentoring as a way to give back to the community. I have been lucky enough to have positive influences and support throughout my life, so I wanted to be able to help others experience that.
2. What is the most rewarding experience you’ve had mentoring?
   I can’t choose one particular experience that would stand out as the most rewarding. The reward is the relationship that you are continuously building with your mentee.
3. What piece of advice do you find most helpful for the people you mentor?
   I actually feel that it is most important not to give advice when mentoring. It is important to be there for your mentee and be supportive and a good role model, however, you want them to learn on their own and be who they are, not who you want them to be. You find that they don’t need advice to make the right decisions or to act appropriately. The whole program is more about helping the student realize their own potential, and to learn that they are in control of their life and future, and that there is importance in every decision they make.
4. What advice would you give to other adults looking to become mentors?
   I would think any mentor in the Mazie Mentoring Program would agree that you get just as much, if not more, out of the program than the students do. My only advice would be to give it a try, and don’t worry about whether or not you think you would be a “good mentor”. The Mazie Mentoring Program does an excellent job at matching students with mentors, and while you could be matched with someone from a completely different background, you will be surprised at how similar you and your mentee are, and how great of a friend you will have.
5. Who has been a mentor in your life?
   Growing up my parents were always extremely supportive and were great influences – I was very lucky to have that. They helped shape my morals and values growing up, and helped me to be the person I am today.
6. What inspired you to become a mentor?
   I had always been involved in community service activities throughout my life, but once I graduated college I didn’t have as many opportunities presented to me, and I found that I wasn’t taking the time to seek out these kinds of opportunities. I saw an advertisement on our company portal for the Mazie Mentoring Program, attended an informational session, and knew it was the program for me.

The John Andrew Mazie Memorial Foundation is dedicated to helping aspiring Framingham and Waltham High School students realize their full potential. For more information: www.mazie.org/become-a-mentor

Why I mentor: Beth Olson, director of IT at Staples

January is National Mentoring Month, and we are highlighting a number of perspectives on mentoring, events, and ways you can get involved in the field. Today’s blog is a Q&A with Staples’ Director of IT Beth Olson, a mentor at the John Andrew Mazie Memorial Foundation in Framingham. Beth’s mentee is an 18-year-old Framingham High School senior who she has mentored since she was 16. Staples is supporting a statewide mentoring public awareness campaign for the third consecutive year.

1. Why is mentoring important to you?
   I truly believe that mentoring is a win-win-win situation. Having a mentor offers an easier, better and more focused path. It helps the “mentee” become more proficient and successful in school and in life. It allows me to “give back” by sharing wisdom and experience. It helps society by developing well-rounded, knowledgeable young adults.

   Mentoring is a complement to school for these kids. In school they learn functional “how-to” things. As a mentor, I can be a coach and can assist with the more subjective areas of life – like what my mentee wants to have, do, and be; as well as things like how to deal with frustration, peer pressure, handling disappointment, being compassionate, and the rewards of being of service.

2. What is the most rewarding experience you’ve had mentoring?
   
   

   Beth and her mentee

   My most rewarding experience as a mentor? There have been so many! They include watching my mentee gain confidence – in herself and in our relationship. Some are small, like watching her be of service to others when we weren’t doing a community service project. We were just out together and she helped a single mom who was feeding her young son. He made a mess and she brought them over her extra paper plate and napkins. Some are larger, like listening to her tell me her New Year’s resolutions: to get all As and Bs, get her driver’s license, and get a job – and then watching her succeed quickly at all three. Another was taking her to her job interview and having them offer her the job on the spot!
3. What piece of advice do you find most helpful for the people you mentor?
   For me, being a mentor is about believing in someone even if they don’t necessarily believe in themselves yet. It’s about keeping it real – being honest and letting her learn from my mistakes. It’s about showing her that I don’t have all the answers but that doesn’t stop me from taking calculated risks, continue learning, and having the willingness to make mistakes. It’s about letting her know that life will not necessarily work out exactly how we plan, but we can control how we react to it. It’s about sharing perspective – staying positive – setting goals and going after them even if they seem out of reach.
4. What advice would you give to other adults looking to become mentors?
   It’s a fabulous experience, but you need to be willing to put in the time. If you are, you’ll reap the rewards tenfold!
5. Who has been a mentor in your life? What are some of the lessons they taught you?
   One of my high school teachers, and my first boss were both informal mentors. They believed in me and saw things in me I couldn’t see yet, but their encouragement led me to reach for goals I wouldn’t have thought I could achieve.
6. What inspired you to become a mentor?
   Being a mentor is a big responsibility. It’s a little like being a parent – only to a child who wants to listen. I became a mentor because I’ve learned a lot of lessons over the years, and I wanted to make a difference and share some of those lessons with someone who was hungry to learn.
7. What mentoring programs have you been involved in?
   I have been a mentor with the Mazie Mentoring Program for the past two years. Prior to that I coordinated teen and children’s workshops and was a resource group leader.