Success Stories

“I was honored to receive the Excellence in Mentoring Award from Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper on January 31,” exclaimed Dudley Reese. Dudley has mentored five kids through Metro Denver Partners in Denver and Douglas County. He was one of two mentors recognized from a field of 80 nominees from 15 organizations. “For me,” stresses Dudley, “mentoring brings fun and purpose to activities I enjoy doing. It’s personally rewarding to meet a young person, get to know them, and help guide them in making decisions. And, Partners is a good organization to work with.

Dudley and Mayor Hickenlooper

The professionalism and dedication of the staff is key.” Dudley also understands the emotions that a kid may feel when first meeting his mentor. “I’ve been a mentor before and realize first impressions can be awkward, but after talking for awhile you can find similar interests. That’s why you were matched in the first place.”

Dudley and Joe

Dudley’s current Junior Partner, Joe, was excited, too. “He’s really cool to be with,” says Joe. “You should have seen us at my sister’s wedding in September. We looked good!” Continuing, Joe talked about their mentoring Partnership, “When I first met Dudley, I was scared. I just didn’t see us hanging out together. But we connected right away. With him I’ve had a lot of new experiences.”

Together they have become a great team. “Joe is easy-going, charming, and quite funny”, says Dudley.

“His Mom is really supportive and makes being a mentor even more gratifying. And, we are working hard to get Joe’s grades up. I go to his parent/teacher conferences and monitor his grades on line. I help with tutoring and motivational stuff.”

“Dudley has been helping me learn to walk away from situations where I could get into trouble,” says Joe. “He’s like a personal trainer who really listens to me. We talk and he genuinely understands and cares. We’re involved in some community activities, and he advises me on a lot of things. I’m learning to listen better, to follow directions, and to be on time. It’s not that easy, but I’m trying to get better.”

“I went to Partners to be a tutor, but during orientation I learned about mentoring and switched,” explains Bree, a Senior Partner. “I’d picked Partners because it’s a smaller, more personal organization where I wouldn’t get lost in the crowd. I was matched with Shaqua in the fall of 2005, and I believe I really am making a difference.” “Bree helps me by letting us discuss a lot of topics openly, particularly politics,” says Shaqua.
		Shaqua and Bree

She gets me to try different foods and to experience different things.
We cook, go shopping, attend plays, see movies, and go ice skating and swimming. We even made our own Halloween costumes.”

“Becoming a mentor was a very personal decision,” stresses Bree. “I saw an opportunity to give back to my community. And, it’s nice to have someone to hang-out with. We are making a picture cookbook that will include all the recipes she likes.”

“Every time we go to something at Partners we learn something good,” says Shaqua. “These lessons really make sense and they are fun. Miss Karen [Quinn] is a powerful influence on me. I’ve been in her program for four years and it’s made a big difference.”

“Shaqua was challenged at school and she has had to learn how to better deal with her emotions,” notes Bree. “She knows when she is upset and is learning to recognize it and deal with it more positively. I’ve truly enjoyed our time together and look forward to many more shared moments.”

“I’M LUCKY TO HAVE HIM IN MY LIFE!”

Ed and Ryan

“I’d been a mentor before, and I liked it. So when I saw Partners’ banner advertising the need for volunteers, I decided to do it again,” explains Ed Morris, a Senior Partner. Retired from the Air Force, Ed has found the Partners program to be excellent. “The one-on-one relationship is perfect,” he says. “Each thing is so individualized and the staff is absolutely superb.”

For Ryan, his Junior Partner, he feels the program is really good for students. “It’s helping me out for the future. I was bored at home and having Ed as a friend has been good.”

Ed, who works at Medtronic Navigation in Louisville, said his first impression of Ryan was good. “He’s talkative and fun to be around. W go to movies, Boondocks, bowling, and shopping.

I believe we’ve developed a very good relationship. Ryan shares things with me and the comfort level is quite high. We’ve celebrated our first year together and we’re going to continue till he’s in college – his ultimate goal.”

“I live with my Grandma,” explains Ryan, a 10^th grader, “and she teaches us what’s right and give us a good home. I didn’t want to get into more trouble,” explains Ryan, and Partners seemed like a good idea. Ed’s a nice man who lets me get things off my chest. He’s helped me do better in school, and supports my goal of becoming a lawyer. He teaches me lots of stuff. I’m lucky to have him in my life.”

“The rewards of mentoring are tremendous,” stresses Ed. “It’s easy to encourage people to do this. Where else can you have such an impact on your community then giving your time to be involved in a young person’s life?”

“Being a mentor is amazing!”

“I was having problems at school, and with my family and friends,” states Brenna, a Junior Partner. “My counselor suggested the Partners program. Having a neutral person to share your feelings with is great!”

“We met a year ago,” explains Penny Thomas, the Senior Partner. “And being in a program like Partners is fantastic. It’s a well-oiled machine with a professional staff person always available. Their matching process insured we’d be compatible and have things in common. Partners has many scheduled activities and life-skills workshops to attend together that help the Partnership to bond and grow.”

Penny and Brenna

“Penny is beautiful,” exclaims Brenna. She smiles a lot and has welcomed me into her life. Hanging out with her is a way of healing stress. She helps me focus on positive things – not the negatives. One time when I had troubles with my Mom, Penny picked me up and we sat in her truck and talked. I was crying and she was making me think of ways to better the situation. She said not to lose sight of my good heart, to act out of love, and to keep communicating. I’m doing better in school and with friends. Mom and I still fight, but now I’m dealing with it so much better.”

“Brenna’s matured so much,” says Penny. “She’s become more open with communication and knows she can tell me anything. And, she’s more responsible, especially with schoolwork. She’s trying hard to be a good student and to get good grades. I’m glad she’s spirited and opened minded, we have so much fun together.

All in all, I feel I’m doing something worthwhile with my life by being a mentor. It’s amazing! Everyone should have this experience.”