Port City Mentor Program Year in Review: 2008-2009

It has been an honor and a privilege for Port City Community Church to have partnered with our area classrooms and schools this past year.  The purpose and hope for the Port City Mentor Program was to provide a caring, dependable role model and friend in the lives of at risk elementary students who were struggling behaviorally, academically, or socially.   We are thankful that we were able to pair up 33 students, at five schools, each with a mentor to help encourage and support them through school and daily life.  The relationship and bond that was formed between the students and their mentors was amazing!  There are countless stories of how these adult mentors made a difference in students’ behaviors, attitudes and even academic performance.  Teachers have shared how once their student began meeting with their mentor they saw a more positive attitude both in and outside of the classroom.  Many teachers also saw a positive impact on the child’s self-esteem and peer relationships.  Students who once dreaded being at school, now were excited and had something and someone to look forward to each week.  One teacher at Rachel Freeman commented how after meeting his mentor, her second grade student was the happiest she had ever seen him and was much more willing to follow directions and complete his work.   

These mentors were extremely committed to their students and committed to supporting them no matter what they needed.  Not only did they eat lunch with the students once a week, but many stayed later to play basketball, solve puzzles, volunteer in classrooms and some even played cards to help students brush up on their math facts!  Many also supported students by attending school ‘family nights’, end-of-the-year fun days, and parties; and two of our fifth grade mentors at Snipes Academy attended fifth grade graduation.  Not only giving of their time, these mentors reached out farther when they saw their students in need.  Mentors sometimes donated school uniforms and classroom supplies as needs arose.  These volunteers cared and loved these children beyond what was asked of them, and the children and teachers noticed.  Often, mentors became not only important to their student, but the whole class began to look forward to their weekly visits!  At one point, we were asked if could provide a mentor for an entire class!  (We wish we could have!)  Teachers were also thankful for our new partnership.  They appreciated the consistency and dependability of our volunteers.  A second grade teacher at Snipes Academy stated that this was the best experience she has had in a school with volunteers.  She greatly appreciated how caring and capable the mentors were.  All teachers who participated in the program this past year stated that they look forward to working with the Mentor Program mentors again next year. 

The Port City Mentor Program not only impacted the students and schools, it also had a huge impact on the mentors.  They learned so much from their weekly lunches with these amazing children!  Mentors looked forward to hanging out with their student, hearing their stories and experiences and simply just playing and laughing with them!  Many mentors stated how special they felt by seeing how excited their child was to meet with them each week.  One mentor shared how she never realized how the smallest amount of extra attention meant so much to her student and could make such a difference!  Many other mentors commented how just showing up and getting hugs and high-fives from their students (and their classmates) always brightened their weeks!  One mentor at College Park Elementary shared the best part of his experience was that he was able to provide some sense of stability and security in his second grade student’s often unstable life.  These relationships between the mentors and the students were ones that was positive and life-changing for each of them.  

As we look ahead to the future, we are excited to continue our partnership with New Hanover County Schools.  We will continue to partner with the five elementary schools from this past year and hope to also expand to Castle Hayne Elementary and Forest Hills Elementary schools.  Many mentors will continue their weekly lunch meetings from this past school year and we hope to provide many new volunteers for new students referred to the program.  Above all else, our hope is to continue to encourage, care for, and support these students, their families and our area schools.   This past year has been a wonderful experience for all involved and we are so thankful to have been given this opportunity.   

A few days ago, I was sitting in my den drinking coffee and munching tortilla chips on a crisp, fall day. I was trying to recall stepping out into the sweltering Louisiana summer as we went to work on our New Orleans mission trip.  June 2009 seems so long ago now, but it’s easy to remember some things I learned about New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward.

Out of some 90 churches once there, about 10 were making the comeback post Hurricane Katrina.  But don’t call it a comeback for The Church of All Souls Episcopal Parish in the heart of the Lower Ninth. It was truly a whole new game.

We arrived from our digs at the Tulane University Baptist Student Center to find that this church we were helping already had its leaders and staff involved in re-establishing a place for worship and community outreach.  It was all taking place in a gutted Walgreens building on St. Claude Avenue that had shut down after Katrina (we saw at least three commercial places around the church that remained abandoned).  In their makeshift yet confident sanctuary, we received our briefing from church staff, and then it was off to the work sites.

My crew started off the day taking some snap shots of the Mississippi River bank and the New Orleans skyline.  We knew it was the Big Easy, but was our work going to be this much of a cake walk?  It wasn’t long before we were painting away on a lady’s house.  Not too easy.  Then again, she did cook us authentic beans and rice, and also made us complimentary Sno Balls (like Snow Cones) later that week.

Back at Walgreens, I found some of my mission comrades painting, starting trim work and even designing a doorway.  Another third of the group was off landscaping a church member’s lot. It was a heroic effort, as I learned that the group resorted to using shovels and some brawn after dismissing some shoddy weed whackers.

If there’s one thing the whole team had in common, it’s that we were sweating big time. Temperatures were upwards of 90 degrees each day. Conveniently enough, we were able to look productive even on our breaks.  We played with kids.

All Souls ran a summer program for children. It was simultaneously happening with the renovations.  A recipe for chaos?  Not hardly. Volunteers were able to pull it off with some skillful organization. We saw kids improving their math skills and enriching themselves in the arts.  I got a warm feeling when I first met some of the kids and learned about the summer program.  And what a great escape from laboring—although I admit it was tiring to lift kids more than three times in a row for slam dunks on the basketball hoop.

As the week continued, I learned more about myself.  I found out I could actually get a lot done in a construction-related mission trip, which isn’t really my bag.  I observed how well our group contributed to the work end of things, as well as interaction with locals.

Not to speak for the group, but I’m pretty positive we all learned something about ourselves.  The trip pushed us in our walks with Christ.  And not to brag, but we were one amazing group.  There was a sense of growth and encouragement all around. Some of us had been following Christ for years, some not even months.  Despite where each of us stood, I felt God was pulling us toward Him. We all had personal reasons for going on the New Orleans Mission, but God revealed additional, more meaningful reasons for leading each of us there.

Expecting to see occasional damaged homes, or the occasional abandoned lots, what we saw when we first entered the Lower Ninth was quite dreary. We saw significant damage and numerous rundown areas.  I realized New Orleans hadn’t come as far as I thought it had since Hurricane Katrina hit in late August 2005 (yeah, do the math).

We became familiar with the “X” markings on houses from government agencies such as the National Guard and DEA.  Occupancy was shown on one side of the X, representing residents who had been injured or killed during the storm.  Within such a grim scene, God kept our spirits up.  Luckily, we were able to pitch in around the community, painting a couple houses and, of course, taking part in All Souls’ vision.   One of my favorite days was Wednesday, June 24th.  We canvassed a section of the Ninth Ward handing out flyers for a cookout and worship service at the church that night.

It was neat to see the culture of a New Orleans neighborhood such as this.  We were told to be careful, as the Lower Ninth has its questionable spots, but I thought about how Jesus went into questionable settings in his ministry.

We met residents and talked about what the church was doing.  We ventured a little further than we were advised.  We got a fairly good response.  I remember getting a chance to listen to a local man’s story and share some about my faith with him.  Intangible experiences such as this were something sweet, as several team members got a chance to share with some individuals around the community.
Days like Wednesday were a lot to pack into the work day.  When we arrived home each day to our air-mattress jigsaw puzzle at the student center, we had some free time.  A lot of us took some God time.  Sometimes, I would venture around the block to The Boot, a popular convenience store on the edge of Tulane’s campus, for some chocolate milk and chewing gum.  Later on we had group reflection time, a time for recounting the day’s happenings, praying and laughs.  It was a great time to rejuvenate our spirits to head out for the next day’s work.

By the latter half of the week, we were all in a huge, bustling effort to finish up our jobs on the Walgreens-turned-worship site.  Just imagine 30-plus people slaving away outside any Walgreens, except on an extremely hot day in the middle of what is arguably a ghost town.  Under the direction of some superb leadership, we completed paint jobs.  A few team members completed a doorway, which I remember being quite impressive.

After wrapping up Thursday night’s delicious homemade taco meal, and learning about Michael Jackson’s death, we had our final New Orleans debriefing and group meeting.  I had never felt so much power in group prayer.  I had never seen so many folks lifting up others, praising them not only for a job well done but the gifts each person had to offer overall.

Each day was a scorcher down in the Big Easy, but it didn’t stop us from serving those in need.  I felt like we left the Lower Ninth Ward better than we found it.  Sure, we did some great construction—but I think we did more for the Great Commission.

Submitted by Adam King