Mentoring Moms Honored

The Volunteer Center’s Mentoring Moms program has been named recipient of the 2010 Governor’s Jefferson Volunteer Award for outstanding Volunteer Program in New Jersey.

The award was presented at a ceremony at NJ PAC in Newark. The Awards were sponsored by the Governor’s Office on Volunteerism, The Star Ledger and the Community Foundation of New Jersey.

The Governor’s Jefferson Volunteer Awards, which are given in 18 categories, honor the dedication and commitment of outstanding individuals and organizations whose selfless gifts of time and talents help improve the quality of life for citizens throughout New Jersey. Recipients demonstrate unique vision, dedication and tenacity of heroic proportion and serve as inspiration for others to respond to the call for volunteer action.

Since 1995, Mentoring Moms has recruited, trained and supported volunteer mentors to provide guidance to overwhelmed mothers. The program supports those who are striving to become better parents while they deal with the challenges of every day living. The Mentoring Moms Program impacts not only mothers, but other family members as well, and largely succeeds because of the volunteers who are there to support the entire family, from attending school meetings with the mother, to helping children with homework, and providing reliable transportation for the family.

“Our program clearly demonstrates that when you help a mom, you help the entire family,” says Cindy Andrake, program director for Mentoring Moms. “One mother, who was living in a domestic violence shelter when she first met her mentor, vowed to rise above her circumstances to be a better example to her teenage daughter. With the help and support of her mentor, this woman completed her G.E.D., found a job and now her family is living independently. The daughter followed in her mother’s footsteps and has completed her first year of college.”

For more information about Mentoring Moms, call (201) 489-9454 ext. 123., or visit our Mentoring website.