Mentoring at Darrough

From the Kokomo-Center Township Schools Newsletter – December 2006

Mentors help students “Say Yes to Education”

This will be the fifth year that community members volunteer to serve as mentors for more than 50 Darrough Chapel elementary students. Teacher Darlene Welke, who considers the Mentoring Program her passion, noted that the Darrough Chapel students have truly benefited from the 1-on-1 time as the youngsters have built relationships with positive adult role models while receiving academic help.

This is the second year for mentor Sue Smith and 5th grader Justice Rose. “I like having a mentor,” Justice said. “Mrs. Smith helps me and she explains things. We do not just do math, but we have games so she can help me learn. Mrs. Smith and I share reading a book, which helps me with phonics. Having a mentor is important because she helps me understand.”

In 2005-2006, more than 60 percent of the 42 mentors in the program were from community partner, Serving in Love, an outreach from Morning Star Church.

According to Mrs. Welke, the students appreciate both the help and the friendships. Mentors volunteer 30 minutes each week at Darrough Chapel, where the sessions include sharing books, understanding classroom work, and playing games. Mrs. Welke wanted to send out a big thank you to all the “loving and caring” mentors, past and present, who have given a part of their busy days to become an important part of the Darrough Chapel children’s lives.

SIL (W)rapping Party

SIL is off to K-Mart every Christmas season to wrap hundreds of presents (free of charge) for K-Mart customers who just don’t don’t have the wrapping gene.

We collect paper all year, so if you have some extra rolls, contact the church.  It generally takes an amount of wrapping paper equal to cover over 100 football fields to cover the presents we wrap during the holidays.