January is National Mentoring Month

In December, President Barack Obama issued a proclamation designating January as National Mentoring Month.

I loved the language the President chose when he said, Across our nation, mentors steer our youth through challenging times and support their journey into adulthood. During National Mentoring Month, we honor these important individuals who unlock the potential and nurture the talent of our country, and we encourage more Americans to reach out and mentor young people in their community.

January 2011, marks the 10th anniversary of National Mentoring Month. This initiative is being driven by the Harvard Mentoring Project of the Harvard School of Public Health, MENTOR, and the Corporation for National and Community Service. Any of these organizations will have more information for you about National Mentoring Month, and how you might get involved.

The current estimate is somewhere around 15 million young people who, at this moment, are in need of a caring adult mentor in their lives. The vast majority of them are young males. The thought of men, across the country, stepping up to "unlock the potential" and to "nurture the talent" of boys, gives me hope for the future.

How about you?

To search for a mentoring opportunity in your zip code, go to the Serve.gov website and enter your location. It may just result in two males having their potential unlocked and talent nurtured!

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