By Leo Miramon, Staff Writer
July 24, 2006
Printed courtesy of Imperial Valley Press, El Centro, CA
As 20-year-old Guillermo Garcia talks to and plays video games with the two children he is mentoring, he enjoys the satisfaction of seeing the kids happy while he is around.
Boys — and girls — like those Garcia mentors often go without someone to share special occasions with, or even just someone to talk to.
But kids in the Imperial Valley can now find that friend through the Imperial County Office of Education’s mentor program.
Helping children ages 4 to 15 who have one or both parents missing from their home, the ICOE mentor program has volunteers who find time to share their personal feelings with such children and earn their trust.
“Children get referred to us by schools, people in the community and parents who have heard about the program,” ICOE mentor program coordinator Denise Cabanilla said.
The program has 131 children matched up with mentors, and ICOE is always looking for volunteers who can give a minimum of one hour a week per year, Cabanilla said.
Mentors need to apply and go through a rigorous screening process as well as get fingerprinted, Cabanilla said.
“We make an effort to place mentors with children who have similar interests, so when they come together they at least can have something in common,” Cabanilla said.
Garcia, who is 6-foot-7, first met the children he would mentor at their home.
As the 6- and 11-year-old boys looked straight up at him in amazement, their eyes opened wide as if they had seen a real life superhero.
“At first, the kids’ mom didn’t want to let them to be alone with me. Anywhere I would take the kids the mother would come along,” Garcia said.
Now the mother is comfortable with Garcia and lets her children go with him to field trips and local restaurants to go and grab something to eat without worrying.
Natalie Wickes, 31, of El Centro has been a mentor for more than a year and has a 13-year-old girl she helps with everyday activities.
“As the youngest in my family, I didn’t appreciate being ignored or treated as if I didn’t have anything to contribute. It’s a personal mission I have in life to make sure every young person I come across knows that they’re valued and loved,” Wickes said.
The program will be starting its third year and has been successful in helping children throughout the Imperial Valley.
Anyone interested in becoming a mentor or anyone who would like to refer a child can call the ICOE Student Well-Being and Family Resources Center at (760) 312-6498.
>> Staff Writer Leo Miramon can be reached at (760) 337-3442 or at lmiramon@ivpressonline.com