Time and Knowledge Nazrana

• Influenced the life decisions of hundreds of young women
• The program has expanded nationally from Toronto to Kitchener, Hamilton, Vancouver, Montreal, Calgary and Ottawa

 

The contribution of TKN volunteers has been instrumental in the success of the Girls Mentorship Program of Canada. The program is designed to provide a support system for teenage girls during critical years in their lives.  Mentees are paired with mentors who are professional women with whom they can relate. These mentors are committed to supporting youth through the exploration of various life decisions such as future career paths, homework, part-time jobs, peer pressure, issues with friends and family relationships. Each mentor caters to the unique needs of the mentees and is supported by a highly trained management team. 

 

The program includes parents as part of the process so that they can help build on the strength of the program. Mentors are encouraged to visit their mentees at home to get to know their families. During one of these visits, a TKN volunteer mentor found that her mentee and siblings came home after school and went straight to the TV and computer. Homework time was virtually non-existent. Working with the mentee’s mother, the mentor helped establish a structure of discipline and routine for the children in which they came home, washed up and had a snack while they did their homework for two hours per day. After a number of months, the children were better behaved and their grades improved. The regular homework routine also helped the mentee complete high school. As a result, she is currently pursuing a college nursing program.

 

In another example, a mentee was trying to decide whether to become a wildlife photographer. Her mentor helped her research what it takes to pursue this career including how much time wildlife photographers spend in the field. The mentee realized that wildlife photographers spend days on end in the wild in uncomfortable situations, waiting for the opportune moment for a prized photo. Through the exploration, the mentee determined that wildlife photography was not the career she wanted to pursue after all. Although she decided to pursue something different, she was grateful for the opportunity to explore a career that she thought could be a possibility before ruling it out.

 

Although the above stories make it may seem like much of the benefit of the program is for the mentees, mentors also gain from their experience. The program is structured in a way that allows the mentors to customize their relationships with their mentees. It is through this structure that they continue to grow and develop their own skills. Mentors are often surprised at the growth and development they experience from their commitment. The following quotes illustrate what mentors gained from their participation in the program:

“I have enjoyed the simple pleasure of taking time out of my hectic schedule to interact with my mentee on a personal level. This is the first time I have mentored and I definitely know that I am getting more out of it than my mentee."

“What I gained was the chance to look at the world from a different perspective, with fresh eyes that have not yet been reined in by prejudice and conviction. I think it’s safe to say that whatever effort we put into this program was reciprocated back to us."

The impact of the program has been significant and much of that success has been due to the contribution made by TKN volunteers. TKN has provided the program with many team members and mentors who give wholeheartedly and consistently of their time and skills. At the end of each program, mentors are recruited into the management team as Team Leads, then Project Leads and Project Support positions. As a result of the excellent work of these dedicated volunteers, the program has been able to expand nationally from Toronto to Kitchener, Hamilton, Vancouver, Montreal, Calgary and Ottawa. In their feedback, mentors and mentees have overwhelmingly indicated that they benefited greatly from the Girls Mentorship Program and hope that the program will continue to grow and make a difference for years to come.