2008 News Archive
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| Lincoln Mentors and Mentees Attending Creighton Basketball Game |
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Lincoln Mentors and Mentees Attend Creighton Ball Game
On Saturday, November 22nd, the TeamMates Mentoring Program celebrated its 7th Annual "TeamMates Day with the Creighton Bluejays." Over 1,000 mentors and mentees crowded into the Qwest Center to watch the Creighton Bluejays defeat Oral Roberts 87-65. Creighton University actively participates with TeamMates through mentoring, and on Saturday invited participants with TeamMates throughout Nebraska and Iowa to experience a Creighton men's basketball game.
Over 30 TeamMates communities came to Saturday's game and after the game members of Creighton's men's and women's basketball teams stayed to sign autographs. Selected mentees were ball boys for the game, and all participants received a special Bluejay tee shirt.
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| Tom Osborne and Warren Buffett |
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The Magic of Mentoring
Over 1,000 guests celebrated the Magic of Mentoring on Friday November 7th at the Embassy Suites in LaVista. The highlight of the evening was a guest interview with Warren Buffett about the mentors in his life. Buffett cited his father and business partner Charlie Munger as having a significant influence on his life. Tom Osborne cited Bob Devaney, Woody Varner and his Uncle Virgil as significant role models. Another highlight of the evening included a TeamMates Testimony by Pam and Jessica - an outstanding TeamMates match. The Kiewit Corporation was honored for excellence in corporate mentoring with over 80 matches as the company as well as tremendous overall support to TeamMates.
Honorary Chairmen for the event were Bruce and Debra Grewcock. General Chairmen are Scott and Danielle Bunz.
A very special thank you to all the supporters who made the evening a success and for helping TeamMates for making a difference in the lives of youth.
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| Coach Snyder with Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity |
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Lambda Chi Alpha Runs Football to Kansas
The TeamMates Mentoring Program, UNL fraternity Lambda Chi Alpha, NU
Athletic Director Tom Osborne and Coach Bill Snyder of Kansas Mentors
teamed up for the Second Annual Football Run to Kansas. Members of the
Lamda Chi Alpha fraternity ran a football from Lincoln, Neb., to
Manhattan, Kan., as a fundraiser for the Teammates Program.
Osborne, co-founder of the TeamMates Program, officially kicked off the
run on Thursday, Nov. 13, by handing off a football to the first Lambda
Chi Alpha runner. The 140-mile run ended on Friday, Nov. 14 at 2:00
p.m. with the football being handed to Bill Snyder, the former football
coach at Kansas State University, outside the football stadium in
Manhattan, Kan. Special thanks to the Lamda Chi Alpha runners for their
tremendous support of mentoring.
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Over 5,000 new mentors in Kansas and Nebraska
On Saturday, November 15th, during the Nebraska -- K-State football
game in Manhattan, Kansas, Coach Bill Snyder, chair of Kansas Mentors,
won the 2008 Coaches' Mentoring Challenge. The challenge, issued in
June of this year between Coach Snyder and Coach Tom Osborne,
co-founder of TeamMates Mentoring Program was a friendly challenge to
see how many new mentors could sign up over a five month period. Kansas
Mentors oversees all mentoring programs in the state, and they signed
up 4,238 new mentors in their various mentoring programs in the five
month period. TeamMates Mentoring Program was able to sign up 1,118 new
mentors over a five month period in Nebraska and Iowa.
Upon receiving his trophy, Coach Snyder stated, "Coach Osborne and I
are thrilled by the thousands that have pledged to mentor over the last
few months. We want to thank both Kansans and Nebraskans for dedicating
their time to truly make a difference in the lives of our children."
Over 15 million children in the United States are in need of a mentor.
GENERAL COLIN L. POWELL TO HEADLINE NATIONAL MENTORING MONTH 2009
BOSTON, MA, October 8, 2008
General Colin L. Powell will headline the Eighth Annual National
Mentoring Month volunteer recruitment drive, it was announced today.
Held each January, the campaign mobilizes community volunteers to help
young people achieve their potential. This year's theme is "Expand Your
Universe. Mentor a Child."
Last year, more than 375,000 individuals responded by seeking
information about local mentoring programs that need more volunteers.
Research has shown that programs that rely on volunteer mentors can
play a powerful role in reducing drug abuse and youth violence while
greatly enhancing a young person's prospects for leading a healthy and
productive life.
As a highlight of National Mentoring Month 2009, Thank Your Mentor Day
will be celebrated on January 22. On that day, many Americans will
reach out to thank or honor those individuals who encouraged and guided
them, and had a lasting impact on their lives. Thank Your Mentor Day
promotes "Four Ways to Honor Your Mentor": 1) contact your mentor
directly to express your appreciation; 2) pass on what you received by
becoming a mentor to a young person in your community; 3) make a
financial contribution to a local mentoring program; and, 4) write a
tribute to your mentor for posting on www.WhoMentoredYou.org.
Each year since its launch in 2002, National Mentoring Month has
enjoyed the strong support of President George W. Bush and the United
States Congress. Other prominent individuals who have participated in
the campaign include: Maya Angelou, former President Bill Clinton,
Clint Eastwood, Senator John McCain, Quincy Jones, General Colin
Powell, Cal Ripken, Jr., Bill Russell, and Usher.
A new, official campaign Web site is currently under development and
scheduled to go live in November 2008. In the meantime, additional
information about National Mentoring Month is available at
www.WhoMentoredYou.org. Thank Your Mentor Day is an initiative of the
Harvard School of Public Health.
