A Different Kind of Mentorship

At noon on Christmas Eve I was at the Vista Detention Center. Leaving the bright sunlight, I walked into the dark receiving area. I gave them my name and ID. The buzzer went off and I went in through the heavy doors.

Like I do every time, I thanked God I was there only as a visitor.

Here's the story: through my church, I am a mentor to an incarcerated individual. Every other Saturday, I visit this inmate - this person - while he's serving out his sentence. My purpose is to provide hope, guidance, and a listening ear. My commitment is to see him through his journey and upon release help him in re-entering society.

We sit on hard metal stools on opposite sides of thick glass. Over a scratchy phone line, we talk about baseball, our families, recent events inside and out. I check in on his health and safety. At a certain point each visit the talk gets serious. We both want him out of there. But until that day, it's a matter of survival.

When I leave, we fist bump through the glass. A lot of times as I walk to my car there is a lump in my throat. I have faith he will make it out safely, but while he's on his journey on the inside I can't help but be scared for him. This time, it was especially hard to leave knowing this is where he'd be spending Christmas.

This is National Mentoring Month. I'm telling this story to illustrate that mentoring can take many forms, but the basic need is the same: people need people to make it through this life.

I recently saw this poll here on LinkedIn which asked people to vote on the best qualities in a mentor.

As you can see from the results, what people look for in a business mentor is very similar to what you might offer someone whose life has taken a significant turn for the worse.

My point: most of the time, we mentor young people who are working their way up. It takes the same skills to mentor someone who is struggling with life at the bottom. Consider adding someone in need to your mentoring.

My mentee is scheduled for release this spring. Often, resolutions made on the inside evaporate out in the air of freedom. I'll do what I can both now and after release to provide as much support as I can. But, as with all mentorships, it's all up to the receiver. We can only give our best.