Thank Your Mentor Day

As a centerpiece of National Mentoring Month, January 2015, Thank Your Mentor Day is celebrated today, Thursday, January 15th.  Many Americans will reach out to thank or honor those individuals who encouraged and guided them, and who had a lasting impact on their lives.

 

The theme for National Mentor Month is “Mentoring Works! Be someone who matters to someone who matters.”  The goal is to encourage people to think about individuals in their lives during their formative years—family members, teachers, coaches, neighbors, employers, friends—who encouraged them, showed them the ropes, and helped them become who they are today.  Then, thank them and encourage others to become mentors.

 

“Most people have someone who helped them somewhere along the line,” says Janet Sharma, CEO of the Volunteer Center of Bergen County.  “This is a chance to say ‘thank you’ and at the same time take advantage of this national initiative to inspire others to become mentors.”

 

Thank Your Mentor Day promotes “Four Ways to Honor Your Mentor”:

• Contact your mentor directly to express your appreciation
• “Pass it on” by becoming a mentor to someone in your community
• Make a financial contribution to a local mentoring program, like the Volunteer Center’s Mentoring Moms and Mentoring Youth Programs.
• Write a tribute to your mentor for posting on the national mentoring website www.WhoMentoredYou.org

 

The Volunteer Center has been sponsoring mentoring programs for over 30 years, and is currently in need of men and women to become volunteer mentors to meet the increasing needs in several areas of the community.  There is an especially great need for male mentors and bi-lingual Spanish speaking volunteers of both sexes.

 

For more information about becoming a mentor, call the Volunteer Center of Bergen County at (201) 489-9454, or visit their website at www.bergenvolunteers.org and click on Bergen Mentors.