Mentors Make the Difference

All children deserve to live in safe, nurturing homes where they can feel valued and loved. They need support to successfully reach their goals. It is also important for children to develop positive and interactive relationships with caring adults. As of June 2015, there were more than 3,800 youth in foster care in South Carolina and more than 7,000 youth in foster care throughout the fiscal year.

            In South Carolina MENTOR’s Therapeutic Foster Care Program, many of these thousands of children, adolescents and young adults are matched with dedicated foster parents that are called “mentors.” 

            “Our dedicated foster parents, or mentors, have a true commitment to loving children in need like they would love their own,” states LaKeisha Myers, program recruiter at South Carolina MENTOR. Myers adds, “This feeling is at the heart of what they do each day as mentors.”

            Mentors do so much more than provide a foster home—they help children learn and grow, forever changing their lives. As positive role models, teachers, family and friends, mentors also develop meaningful relationships with the youth they support and provide 24-hour supervision and support, ongoing family- and community-based activities, life skills development and more.

            Mentors serve children from all walks of life. Some may have medical, emotional or behavioral challenges, while others may have experienced abuse or neglect at some point. Like all children, these young people need a warm, caring place to call home.

            January is recognized as National Mentoring Month, and South Carolina MENTOR’s Therapeutic Foster Care Program stands ready to help individuals in life’s most critical times of growth and development. The program has proven that children flourish when they are able to receive services and support in a natural home setting. As a mentor, one can make a difference in a child’s life. Contact Myers at 803-451-3984 to learn more about becoming a mentor.

For more information, visit  MakeADifferenceAtHome.com.