TRUST
I hired a house painter. He is halfway between my age and the age of newly minted graduates of high school or college. He is overqualified from a skill standpoint but looking for a short respite job to counter the toll that time and hard work has taken on his body. A construction day job is not easy. His real motivation, however, in sourcing this painting work is to create a conduit for new business for younger workers. He includes an apprentice to work with him. He gets to bid on many jobs because of his reputation for great work. He has become a mentor to the next generation of house painters and general contractors. This is mentoring at its best. Built on trust that extends to the apprentice.
Recently, I participated in documenting the project a 100-year-young symphonic orchestra created to help the next generation of composers. Believed to be a first, Symphony NH commissioned a new work directly from undergraduate music majors across the State of New Hampshire.
Student Composers
Four student composers were selected from among all applicants based on the quality of their 90 second excerpts. Those four students received guidance from their teachers and members of the orchestra culminating in a world premiere of The NH Concerto performed by the orchestra for a paying public audience. The results were amazing. The comments and experience gained is unmatched. Beats the heck out of TikTok and other digital tools. This too is mentoring at its best. They created a bridge of connection across the generations and gave an early boost to the careers of aspiring young musicians and composers.
Mentoring and Apprenticeships
Mentoring and apprenticeships are the pairing of someone with a lot of experience with someone with lots of energy but not a lot of experience. As my previous examples demonstrate, the opportunity to provide mentoring extends to nearly all fields of work. The energy, flexibility and curiosity young people have can be matched up with the maturity well-seasoned humans have with life experiences and human nature. Together, they can amplify strengths and create a winning combination. Mistakes can be avoided and all parties learn something new. This intergenerational alliance creates trust.
ArtVan Program’s 20th Anniversary
This is the 20th anniversary of ArtVan. A mobile art therapy nonprofit that serves youth in under-resourced communities across Maine.
ArtVan gives local youth a safe space to express their feelings through the creation of art. The therapy part is subtle. It arrives quietly with the paints and brushstrokes of conversations that help young folks who may not yet have the tools or words to deal with the magnitude of what is bothering them. Tangible artistic output together with sometimes intangible emotional needs and concerns get addressed. Trust develops and better life outcomes are insured.
ArtVan is led by caring mentors, guiding youth early on in their life journeys thru some difficult but important formative years. Our midcoast community knows founder Jamie Sylvestri and many of us recognize the richly decorated Art van that delivers services.
As one of ArtVan’s original advisory board members, and a fan for more than eighteen of their twenty years, I have watched it grow from Jamie and her art van to the ArtVan team pivoting to rapidly meet the changing needs of the community they service.
ArtVan keeps it local and they always make it easy for their young friends to participate.
Future leaders – Donate now!
These youth we mentor now will be our future leaders. They will become part of the answers we will need or more of the problems we need to solve. The choice is ours.
Donate now http://artvanprogram.org/donate Just $20 for twenty years is not a big ask but the result, if we all do it, is cumulative. We each can make a difference. Ask 20 friends to help as well.