Maine Township Launches Youth Mentoring Program

Ribbon cutting launches new mentoring program

A new mentoring program that partners Maine Township’s MaineStay Youth & Family Services and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago (BBBS) officially launched at a ribbon cutting ceremony March 22 at Maine Township Town Hall in Park Ridge. Both organizations had representatives on hand at the hour-long program to talk about the power that mentoring programs have to change lives. About 80 people were on-hand including the children being mentored called “Littles” and their adult mentors referred to as “Bigs”. Representatives of several school districts and other partners of the program were there too.

“We are grateful to the people in the Maine Township community for the tremendous outpouring of support for this program,” said Carol A. Teschky, Township Supervisor. “For an endeavor like this to be successful, it requires dedicated individuals to serve as role models and the right students to participate." The volunteer recruitment campaign netted more than 100 inquiries from people who were interested in helping and social workers from local schools have identified students who would benefit most from the program with a short waiting list remaining.

The program will match 20 mentors with 20 students in grades 4-6. Participants will meet two evenings each month in a structured group setting at Maine Township Town Hall. Mentors and youth will interact with each other one-on-one and also participate in group activities. Focusing on social and emotional development, the ultimate goal of the program is to help these students take positive steps towards academic and future success.

"Collaborative relationships with organizations such as MaineStay Youth & Family Services are critical to our mission of matching more children in need with positive, caring adults," said Art Mollenhauer, Chief Executive Officer of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago, during his remarks Tuesday. "We couldn’t ask for a better partner than MaineStay to connect children and families in the Northern suburbs with our organization.”

For more information about MaineStay Youth & Family Services, visit www.mainetownship.com/mainestay or call 847-297-2510. For more information about BBBS of Metropolitan Chicago, visit www.bbbschgo.org.

Ribbon Cutting Photo:
Township Supervisor Carol Teschky cuts the ribbon to officially launch the new mentoring program with many onlookers to cheer her on.

Boardroom Photo:
Back row, l to r, are Trustee Kimberly Jones; Chris Moore, BBBS Site Based Program Coordinator; Supervisor Carol Teschky; Highway Commissioner Bob Provenzano; Art Mollenhauer, BBBS Chief Executive Officer; and Marie Brenner, BBBS Manager of Site Based Programs.

Front row, l to r, are Trustee Walter Kazmierczak; Trustee Laura Morask; Michelle Hanfling, BBBS Senior Director of Site Based Programs; Assessor Susan Moylan Krey and MaineStay Director Richard Lyon.