Mayor Walsh launches mentoring movement
Mayor Martin J. Walsh today joined President and Chief Executive Officer of Mass Mentoring Partnership, Marty Martinez, and Massachusetts President of Bank of America, Bob Gallery in launching the Mayor’s Mentoring Movement. In partnership with Mass Mentoring, Mayor Walsh and the Office of Health and Human Services will recruit more than 1,000 new mentors over the next two years to empower young people in Boston.
“Boston is filled with great mentors who can change the lives of young people in positive and meaningful ways,” said Mayor Walsh. “I encourage everyone— from teachers, to doctors, to artists, to lawyers, to members of the business and tech communities, and beyond —to get involved. We can make a difference and take extra steps to ensure that every young person has a caring adult in their lives. Boston youth are full of potential, and deserve successful outcomes. I have experienced first-hand the power a mentor can have, and I want to make sure each of our Boston youth can take advantage of this opportunity.”
“We are honored to join together with the City of Boston on this initiative to continue to grow empowering youth-adult relationships throughout Boston,” said Marty Martinez, President & CEO of Mass Mentoring Partnership. “Our partner programs are excited to join in this effort and are ready to match caring adults with young people who need their support.”
Mass Mentoring Partnership is helping Mayor Walsh to connect volunteer mentors with mentoring opportunities by referring them to mentoring programs throughout the city. So far, over 100 individual referrals of volunteer mentors through the Mayor’s Mentoring Movement have already been made.
Mentors encourage positive choices, promote high self-esteem, and academic achievement. They foster confidence in young people that allows them to be the best version of themselves, and more productive members of society. The impact of a mentor’s dedication and care can lift youth off of a bad path and place them on a road to success.
Mentoring can take as little as a few hours each month and businesses that connect their employees to this initiative will play an important role in sustaining its work. Of the 1,000 caring adults that are recruited in the next two years, at least 100 will be City of Boston employees.
“The business community must play a major role if we are to meet Mayor Walsh’s challenge to increase mentoring partnerships in Boston,” said Bob Gallery, Massachusetts president, Bank of America. “We all have a vested interest in making sure the next generation is ready to lead the city forward.”
Companies can participate in mentoring in a number of ways:
- Encourage employees to become mentors either on their own or as a group;
- Support mentoring programs through grants or sponsorships
- Provide pro-bono support; or
- Donate tickets for mentors and mentees to enjoy a ‘lunch’ or ‘dinner’ together
To learn more about the Mayor’s Mentoring Movement, visit: bostonmentors.org. Follow the conversation on Twitter: #BostonMentors. To watch Mayor Walsh’s interview with two Boston Public School students on the power of mentoring, visit: http://ow.ly/Jclnb.
To see why I’m invested in #Boston youth, view: http://ow.ly/Jclnb.
