Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness is laying out a challenge to the adults in the city – he wants 50 new mentors for our youth.  It’s all part of a campaign by the Youth Mentoring Initiative (YMI), a group founded by Darren Heil, who serves as the nonprofit organization’s Director of Community Engagement.

“Any student benefits from having another caring adult in their life,” Heil said.  “(Mayor) Scott Fadness is playing his part.”

YMI asks one hour per week to spend with a young person in the Fishers community.  Heil added that financial support, from individuals or the business community, helps keep the program moving forward.

YMI in Fishers ended the last school year with 75 adult mentors.  The organization is in the process of garnering more volunteer adult mentors for this school year.  Heil says he would like to see 150 mentors by the end of this school year, but to reach that goal, volunteers and the business community will need to step forward.

All adult mentors receive training and talking points to help guide the discussions with the students.  “It can be very structured in the conversation, but then again, (mentors) have the freedom to talk about anything as the relationship grows,” said Heil.

The students are asked what they get out of the mentoring program, and their responses clearly show how important this program is in their lives.

One comment was seen in multiple student feedback at the end of the last school year. “They said, ‘I am so glad I have someone I can talk to'”, Heil told LarryInFishers.  “One girl said, ‘…because I had someone to talk to, I feel better about myself and I no longer think of suicide'”

Another young man said that he is now excited about his future because his mentor was encouraging.

After reviewing the student feedback on what they gained from last school year’s program, Heil asks an important question.  “As a society, what have we done?  These kids are growing up and they need direction.  They only get so much direction and support from their peers.  What they need is direction from an adult.”

YMI is about relationships, according to Heil.  It allows an adult to have a relationship with a student grades 5-12 without being the authority figure of a teacher or coach.

If you are considering volunteering as a mentor, Heil has a message for you “Your presence is powerful.”

You can get more information about volunteering and/or contributing to YMI at this link.