High School Mentor Ministry
Dean Bishop is a police officer with the San Diego Police Department. He knows the streets. He knows what it’s like for a lot of teenagers out there — kids who make bad decisions and start down wrong paths because they don't have adults involved in their lives. If just one person cared, that could be the turning point for them— the pivot point from destruction or hopelessness, to success and fulfillment.
So Dean decided to provide that turning point.
He is partnering with the police department and his local high school to start an after-school teen mentor program he calls PIVOT. While Dean is a committed Christian, the purpose of the meetings is not evangelization. The program builds solid relationships with the school and the community, and is funded by grants and donations. It focuses on coping and decision-making skills.
"We want the kids to struggle through some of the issues they don't get to talk about either at home or at school or maybe even in their church," said Dean, a father of young children. "Issues like anger, fear, bitterness, loneliness, their self-image."
Dean says he and his fellow volunteers want to try to get a root causes and deal with them first. "Then maybe the kids won't turn to alcohol or drugs."
You can do something too.
You don’t have to be a cop or a dad to help out a teenager. You do need to have energy, patience and a heart for kids. "You may be the person that makes a difference in these kids' lives," said Dean. "You can’t fail, if you pour your life into them. They're going to sense it, and down the road they're going to be so appreciative of everything that you’ve done."
Check out specific "how-to" information here on how to start a high school mentor program. Then go out and DO Something!