I have a passionate desire to serve the community. Of all the volunteering programs I have been involved in, my favorite is the Pershing Pals Mentoring Program that I was a part of for two years during my education at Lincoln Northeast High School. Every other week, during my lunch, I would travel to Pershing Elementary School to play and interact with a fourth grader I was partnered with for the semester. As a mentor, my goal was to serve as an accessible resource that my pal could turn to whenever he or she had any questions or concerns about anything at all, including school, relationships and internal conflicts. I was extremely proud when I found out I was one of fifteen students selected to be in the program. Before being sent off to work with students at Pershing Elementary, mentors took a semester long course called “Peer Helpers.” It was an extensive training course where we developed a skillset to effectively communicate with these younger fourth graders. We learned to show warmth acceptance to others to boost their self-esteem and invite them to …show more content…
Our first meeting, he was surprisingly open, and I learned about his hardships. He had temper issues, and he was extremely ashamed that he could not control his tantrums. Together, we brainstormed a solution to handle his anger; he was to remove himself from the scene and repeat to himself, “I am bigger than my problems,” reminding himself that perhaps the problem at hand is not significant as he initially perceives them to be if he just takes a step back and looks at the big picture. His anger issues most likely stemmed from his relationships at home and his family’s low socioeconomic status, which I learned more about after more meetings. I advised him as best as I could, but I worked more to change his perspective, reminding him that, “It’s going to be okay,” because he has all the necessities and tools to still be