No images? Click here
Hi
You've often heard stories of mentor kids who have been selectively mute and due to a dedicated and caring mentor in their lives, they have started talking again. This is ALWAYS wonderful to hear. But we also have kids who just love to talk. Take a moment to read a little bit about a few of them!
Look who's talking this month!
The things they say...
We hear lots of the cute things our kids say about their mentors so we thought we would share some of them with you. We hope they make you smile.
"Having someone that I can play games with, talk to and have fun is valuable. It has made me more confident with speaking because I am normally too shy, but when I go to Kids Hope with Judy I talk a lot." Sam (Yr 6)
“I love you so much. You’re like another mother to me. Since I met you, I have been so happy.” Joe (Yr 4)
"It is really fun because we get to play games, go outside and find animals. We talk about big words and she helps me understand the words. We read books. I like Lorraine a lot." Freya (Yr 3)
“Having a mentor makes you feel famous!” Georgie (Yr 3)
“I was wondering when you were going to get here. I’ve been waiting all year for my mentor and now you’re finally here!” Ravi (Yr 2)
"Of course I'm happy, you're here!" Eva (Yr 5)
Monday to Friday!
Every Friday, Liam stops work early and drives to his local school. He parks his car and walks directly to the staff room. Why? Because that's where Liam mentors Jamie. And he absolutely loves mentoring Jamie!
However, sometimes he worries he's not making the impact everybody talks about. Why? Well, Jamie doesn't talk much.
Every Monday Tori, the Kids Hope Coordinator, starts the week by hosting the school's Breakfast Club where she also sees Jamie. She says Jamie never stops talking. Why? Because he loves hanging out with his mentor, Liam, and loves telling everyone about him.
Goes to show, things aren't always what they seem!
And just to make it more interesting...
Tori ran into Jamie's Grandma at Aldi the other day. He lives with her. She said she is so grateful to have a younger adult and male role model, like Liam, in Jamie's life. She also told Tori that Jamie talks about Liam all the time and loves school now. Especially having Breakfast Club on Mondays and Mentoring on Fridays.
What a fabulous way to bookend a week for a young boy like Jamie!
Talk - fest!
Sally had been struggling to get to school since COVID. Her mum had also been ill, which didn’t help.
So, the wellbeing team made a heartfelt plea to their Kids Hope partner, Whitehorse Uniting Church - 'They desperately needed a mentor for Sally!' Little did they know how significant this request would actually be.
In late 2023, they found Joan, a loving and thoughtful mentor for Sally.
Since then their relationship blossomed. Recently Joan shared, “Today we just had a talk-fest!” Sally wanted to tell me so many things. We played ‘Go Fish’ and had lots of laughs. I asked her to rate our session from 1-10.
Sally smiled, jumped up and down and said, “100!”
If you've got something to say...
Have you noticed how much we love telling stories?
And we can never have enough. So, if you've got a story tell about how Kids Hope mentoring has transformed a young child's life, then we'd love to hear it! All you need to do is click here and start writing.
You may be a parent, a teacher, a mentor, a principal or a Kids Hope alumni. No matter who you are, we would love to hear from you.
Remember, your story has the potential to change another child's life!
Thank you for taking time to read our heart warming stories. With your support, let's continue to change lives - one child at a time.
