Meet our runners: Chris Collier

For the third year in a row, Mass Mentoring Partnership is honored to be an official charity partner of the B.A.A. Boston Marathon® on April 15. We want you to meet our amazing runners. Let’s go Team MMP!

Runner:  Christopher Collier
Longest run to date: Bermuda Triangle Challenge January 2013 (3 days: 1 mile, 10k, Full Marathon)
Favorite song to listen to while running: Chariots of Fire
Favorite post-run snack: Gatorade. But after a marathon race all I really want is a messy bacon cheeseburger and a beer.

1. What inspired you to run the 2013 Boston Marathon for MMP? Running is a great way to stay in shape.  It is also a great way to make new friends.  Running along the coalition path with all the others is a very inspiring time.  Hundreds of charity runners are on the path. Waking up early on Saturday morning to go run 10-15 miles in the cold.  Some think we are crazy, but they just haven’t experienced the reward at the end of the trail. Last year, I was completing one of my longer training runs and was on the back-end of the run, eagerly looking for my finish mark.  I was gaining on a runner and as I got closer to him I realized that he only had one foot and was running with a prosthetic running device.  I don’t know how he lost his limb but I do know that the courage and strength it takes for someone to be able to lose a limb and then have the ambition to get back to running is powerful beyond measure.  Whenever I am running out of energy on my runs I just think back to this moment and realize, if he could do it, then I really have no good excuse to quit.
2. What has been the most rewarding experience of your training and/or fundraising so far? I very much enjoy the support during the races.  Strangers will scream for you, hand you water or snacks.  During the 2012 Boston Marathon people had their garden hoses on all day for you to run through.  It is really humbling to see all the support the community gives.
3. Tell me about your mentee! My Mentee is Jahmir. He is 11-years-old. I have recently graduated from the program due to a change in location.  I spent more than 2.5 years spending weekends with him just enjoying time together in a nearby arcade, Boston Common, or forcing him to clear a fear of heights and check out the observation lounge at the top of the Prudential.  As many mentors know, the first few months are not easy and there is usually a large barrier that must be broken one brick at a time. However, once I gained his trust, I befriended an energetic, athletic, happy-go-lucky adolescent.  I can tell what he enjoys most is just having someone to hang out with, joke around with, and be a little rambunctious with.
4. What do you think is the most important thing a mentor can do for a child? Be patient and sometimes all you have to do is listen. Be an outlet. Be a friend and not a parent.
5. What is the best piece of advice a mentor can give? Being in a mentoring program is not all sunshine and rainbows. There will be struggles along the way, but if you are patient with the relationship, there is a light that shines brighter than any other at the end of the tunnel.
6. Complete this sentence: When I finish the Marathon, I will feel…Exhausted, but very proud.

If you would like to read more about Christopher or make a donation to his fundraising, please visit http://www.razoo.com/story/Boston-Marathon-2013-1

Meet our runners: Jeff Russell

For the third year in a row, Mass Mentoring Partnership is honored to be an official charity partner of the B.A.A. Boston Marathon® on April 15. We want you to meet our amazing runners. Let’s go Team MMP!

Favorite song to listen to while running: James Taylor’s “How Sweet it is to be loved by you” (Boston Live version)
Favorite post-run snack: Cheerios with almond milk

1. What inspired you to run the 2013 Boston Marathon for MMP? Hundreds of mentees/mentors – I receive remarkable feedback on a regular basis on the life-changing impact a mentor has on a child/young or adult.
2. What has been the most rewarding experience of your training and/or fundraising so far? Having our amazing, remarkable, committed, passionate, caring and most beautiful Old Colony Y mentoring employees thank me for supporting MMP and our mentoring efforts! (Jeff is the chief operating officer at the Old Colony Y in Brockton)
3. Tell me about your mentee! Iraimi is a remarkable young woman who had experienced being homeless at a young age and was with the Y in our mentoring and housing programs.  She graduated from Wheaton College this past spring and, after a highly competitive, nation-wide process, was selected as a Watson Fellow.  As a Watson Fellow, she is now touring four countries this year – Scotland, Senegal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka – to study youth 
4. development work, mentoring and developmental assets.  All because she was mentored.  So exciting!
5. What do you think is the most important thing a mentor can do for a child? Listen and be totally committed to the mentees while you are with them.
6. What is the best piece of advice a mentor can give? Have confidence in yourself, take calculated risks and set high goals.
7. Complete this sentence: When I finish the Marathon, I will feel…Very sore and tired HA! Actually, I will feel quite proud and fulfilled I was able to help in a small way an agency fulfill its mission. Mass Mentoring Partnership is the best mentoring advocacy group in the world! I see their efforts and outcomes daily!

If you would like to read more about Jeff or make a donation to his fundraising, visit http://www.razoo.com/story/Jeff-Russell-1

Meet our runners: Ryan Stirling

For the second year in a row, Mass Mentoring Partnership is honored to be an official charity partner of the B.A.A. Boston Marathon® on April 16. We want you to meet our amazing runners. Let’s go Team MMP!

Runner: Ryan Stirling
Longest run to date: Philadelphia Marathon – 26.2 miles
Favorite song to listen to while running: The Prize Fighter Inferno – The Margretville Dance
Favorite post-run snack: Peanut butter, banana, and chocolate milkshake

1. Why did you choose to run the 2012 Boston Marathon for MMP?

I volunteer for Stand and Deliver, a mentoring program that matches students from Lawrence High School to help them achieve academic success. I knew that Mass Mentoring helps Stand and Deliver so it was an obvious choice to run for MMP.

2. What has been the most rewarding experience of your training and/or fundraising so far?

The most rewarding part of this experience has been the amazing outpouring of support from my friends and family. I have an app on my phone that notifies me when anyone donates to my Razoo page, so whenever I receive a notification I get very excited and show it to whoever I’m with at the moment! It is really fun.

3. Tell me about your mentee! Have you told her about the Marathon?

When I told my mentee, Johanna, about the Boston Marathon she asked me if I was going to “win” the race. I had to explain that unfortunately, that was not going to happen but that I was going to try my best.

4. What do you think is the most important thing a mentor can do for a child?

I think it is important for mentors to be there for their mentees – on good days and on bad days. Knowing someone is in your corner makes a tremendous difference.

5. What is the best piece of advice a mentor can give?

Put your full effort into whatever you want to do.

6. Complete this sentence: When I finish the Marathon, I will feel…

Accomplished.

If you would like to read more about Ryan or make a donation to his fundraising, please visit http://www.razoo.com/story/Stirling

Meet our runners: Shannon Rielly

For the second year in a row, Mass Mentoring Partnership is honored to be an official charity partner of the B.A.A. Boston Marathon® on April 16. We want you to meet our amazing runners. Let’s go Team MMP!

Shannon Rielly

Runner: Shannon Rielly
Longest run to date: 15 miles
Favorite song to listen to while running: Depends on my mood of course but really anything that can pump me up
Favorite post-run snack: I live off of peanut butter sandwiches!

1. Why did you choose to run the 2012 Boston Marathon for MMP?

I have always been a runner and have had a goal to run the Marathon, but I wanted to do it for a reason. I have been involved in Big Friends Little Friends for almost four years and my little brother is so important in my life. I felt as though Team MMP was the perfect team to run for!

2. What has been the most rewarding experience of your training and/or fundraising so far?

The fundraising has definitely been the hardest part, but it has been so rewarding to see the number of people who give. Many of my family members and friends have reached out to people they know on my behalf, and I cannot believe the number of people who give who I have never even met or talked to. It is very inspiring.

3. Tell me about your mentee! Have you told him about the Marathon?

My mentee is named Kevin and he is 8-years-old. I have told him about the Marathon, but I am not sure if he understands how long 26 miles really is. He always says to me, “Can I run it with you because I can run faster than you! I can beat you!” I think deep down he is really appreciative.

4. What is the best piece of advice a mentor can give?

“You can accomplish anything you put your mind to.” Personally, I have always been a driven person, but I realize now that some children aren’t given the amount of encouragement as I was. I like to tell my mentee he can do anything if he tries.

5. Complete this sentence: When I finish the Marathon, I will feel…

Accomplished. This has been something I have had on my mind for years, and I know when I finish I will be extremely proud of myself.

If you would like to read more about Shannon or make a donation to her fundraising, please visit http://www.razoo.com/story/Shannon-Rielly.

A “Social Capitalist” take on mentoring

The business world is abuzz these days with the terms “social capital” and “social networks.” Much of this buzz might focus on the latest features of a given social networking website, or which company is going to hit it big next. But the underlying premise of social capital is that relationships have significant value that can help individuals and communities. Of course, mentoring is all about relationships, so let’s explore how a “Social Capitalist” perspective can help us as mentors.

Social Capital, Inc. President & Founder David Crowley

Accessing new networks: While having a lot of friends is generally a good thing, educational and economic success is often based on “the strength of weak ties.” If you are a college-educated professional mentoring a young person who doesn’t have family or neighbors who went to college, you can create a bridge to circles your mentee wouldn’t otherwise be able to access. This can have tangible benefits such as connections to job or scholarship opportunities, and has significance in terms of transmitting norms and values that support success. Many youth in need of mentors have a lot of negative influences around them – providing mentees opportunities to interact with our own family and friends can provide alternative examples.

Teaching social norms: I recall a teen mentoring program I worked with where the teens decided they wanted to organize a Thanksgiving dinner for isolated seniors. They were excited about the idea, so I was wondering why they were stumbling in carrying out their assigned tasks. I came to realize they were very intimidated by the basics of making a business phone call, and we needed to provide them training to increase their comfort level on this unfamiliar task. Young people will learn some norms and skills they need through simple observation, but we can also explicitly teach them skills like professional etiquette, appropriate attire for various situations and other behaviors that we might take for granted. The struggles of first generation college students from urban schools are now well-documented; I suspect mentors could help address this by helping youth develop effective study skills and other habits that lead to success.

Building social capital: Social capital is created in relationships where there is a reciprocal feeling of trust. As anyone who has been a mentor knows, trust with our mentee must be earned over time. At Social Capital Inc., we train Social Capitalists to think in terms of how to make social capital “deposits” that strengthen our relationships, and this thinking can definitely help us as mentors.

Probably the most important thing we can do is make agreements to do things with our mentees, and take care to stick to the commitments we make. Also, listening empathetically to problems without being judgmental is another vital way we build social capital with them. Explicitly working to build our social capital with our mentees will help our success with them, and it also models effective relationship building skills that healthy youth need to develop.

Now if you’ve read this far you have some perspective on how a Social Capitalist approach can help young people we serve. But the social capital benefits of mentoring aren’t just for the young people! Volunteering with a mentoring program is a great way to build your own social capital. Other volunteers you meet can expand your base of professional contacts—and the commitment to youth you share with these volunteers provides a good foundation of social capital with them. As noted in a recent study by LinkedIn, volunteer experience can differentiate you from other candidates when seeking a job.

We mentor to enrich our own lives and that of others. This wealth we create is social capital.

Guest author David Crowley is the founder and president of Social Capital, Inc.