Hello, my name is Ileana Rodriguez and I work for Cartus Corporation as an Accounting Analyst in the Intercultural & Language Solution Team. This is my 6th year mentoring. I remember the day I received the email about mentoring. Having worked with young children in the school system for the past 10 years before my employment with Cartus, I of course knew firsthand how important this program was. I immediately jumped on it! This gave me the opportunity to stay connected and continue making a difference in young lives. I actually became the mentor to a little girl who was in the kindergarten classroom I had worked in prior to my employment with Cartus (this was a coincidence); she was now in the 3rd grade. We instantly hit it off and both looked forward to our weekly meeting. Although she was a little shy, I have to report she is now in the 8th grade and will be attending High School in the Fall and is very well-adjusted. We had our times going through the pre-teen and teen stages. However, I've never thought of not coming back especially as I see her growing into such a beautiful young lady. Our relationship continues to blossom and I can't imagine her not being in my life or I in hers. Mentoring has been such a rewarding experience; I would definitely recommend it to others. I am looking forward to the next four years with this young lady at the High School as she continues to grow like a flower. Thanks again to the Mentoring Program for the opportunity in Making A Difference.

Farley A. Santos:

Kerry O'Mahony:

UTC Aerospace Systems Recruiting Specialist

I've been mentoring for two years. I was lucky enough to be paired with a quiet, adorable second-grader named Jocelyn who is very shy and insecure. When I'm with her, we generally play games or she shows me the projects that she's been working on at school. She has a soft voice and I bend over to her level and strain to hear what she's saying. She says very little but when she does speak, she tells me about her two sisters and her dog named Caspar. Her older sister gave birth to a little boy in April. This has been a real thrill for Jocelyn who calls him her son.

Sometimes it's difficult to gauge if Jocelyn likes my company or not. She is serious by nature and it's hard to get a laugh out of her. Very often in the middle of a game, she'll ask if we can go outside to play (I mentor her during recess). The kids outside ask me if I'm her mother (we look nothing alike) or if I'm with her because she has problems. I say, no, Jocelyn has no problems that I'm aware of, I'm just her friend. When I made that remark, I looked down to see a little smile spread across Jocelyn's face.

I'd like to think I have made a difference in building up Jocelyn's confidence level. In any case, the kids seem to envy her that she has an adult friend who will race with her across the playground or try to outdo her on crossing the monkey bars (I never succeed).  

What keeps me going back to mentoring?  I'm determined to beat her on the monkey bars!