Boulder County looking for volunteer youth mentors

Thirteen years ago, Boulder County saw a gap in its service to its younger residents. The Integrated Managed Partnership for Adolescent and Child Community Treatment (IMPACT) director at the time was instrumental in establishing the county's youth mentoring program; IMPACT works to assist youth (from 0 to 18-years-old) to match them with intervention services when needed.

Since establishing the program, hundreds of youths throughout the county have been matched with adults, who have gone through training, in the effort to create a network of support throughout the community. "The Boulder County Community Services Youth Mentoring Program helps connect youth with stable adults who want to give back to the community and have the courage to step up and commit with compassion to our kids' futures," said media contact Alice Kim.

The current mentor application is set to close on Sept. 16 as the mandatory training is scheduled for the following Tuesday, Sept. 21. Kim said that the program is always looking for ways to include more diverse volunteers. However, since many meetings take place after school or on weekends, it is usually difficult if volunteers have children of their own.

Mentors are involved in the lives of their youth mentees for a year, meeting with them at least once per week for two hours to "be an active compassionate listener," whether that's through, sharing meals, watching sporting events or other activities. The program also requires that the mentor-mentee pair be matched one-on-one by gender, so a diverse pool of both participants is required.

While the program considers all applicants who fit the requirements--e.g., at least 21 years old, pass a background check, have reliable transportation--program coordinators hope to see more diversity to better match mentors and mentees. Not only does the program match based on gender and mentors' availability, but the program tries to match participants based on other criteria such as shared interests, cultural awareness and even location.

"They build a relationship of trust and compassion and deepen their connection through sharing new or established interests and working on dreams or goals set by the mentee," said Kim. "We especially would like to see more people of color become mentors since youth who are matched with someone who looks like them, or sounds like them, or has a similar background, can envision more positive outcomes for their own lives."

The mentees are youth between the ages of 12 and 16-years-old, who are referred to the program by county service professionals, school counselors and justice system partners who interact with youth. Kim said that there are many youths in the county who have experienced some type of trauma and "yearn for connection with an adult who takes interest in them."

Mentors are important, because they can become another advocate for a child in need, all while strengthening interpersonal ties in the community. "Very often the mentee will say their mentor is the only person they can rely on," Kim said. "It's a lovely and important responsibility for the mentor, and a lifeline for the mentee. [Mentors] often tell us it's a deeply meaningful experience, and many in the past decade have continued to be part of their former mentees' lives well into college, community college and adulthood."

Kim also said now is an important time to get involved due to the impact of COVID. Since youths have increasingly been isolated from both peers and adult leaders like teachers, the county mentorship program is vital to filling those gaps. "Opening eyes of both mentor and mentee and providing opportunities for our youth to see positive outcomes after turbulent teen years is why we do this."

If you are interested in becoming a mentor, you can contact [email protected] or call Anne Brubacher at 720-656-8445. This year's application closes Sept. 17, 2021.