Welcome back to our summer intern James!

Hi, my name is James Fredericksen, and I am the senior summer intern for Friends for Youth. A little bit about me, I am getting ready to start my senior year of college at Willamette University in Salem Oregon as a history major, focusing on ancient and medieval Europe. I attended high school at Menlo Atherton (MA), and grew up in Menlo Park. As a child I played a wide variety of sports, although I have largely stopped since going to college.

I love reading, particularly at night where I can spend a (far too) great amount of time delving into a particular book. It is not uncommon for me to start reading at 11:00 or so and look up and find it to be 2-3 in the morning or even later. My favorite genre is sci-fi and fantasy and some of my favorite series include Redwall, The Dresden Files, the Belgariad, and Mortal Engines. Favorite individual books are The Catcher in the Rye, Animal Farm, and 1984.

My favorite television series are Firefly, Black Books, and Futurama, although I enjoy a great many more. Honestly I love anything by Joss Whedon who has yet to let me down. In terms of film, I most enjoy The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Lives of Others, and Lawrence of Arabia.

Musically I am very scattered. I enjoy many genres and artists. I was more or less raised on Warren Zevon, John Prine, and Bruce Springsteen, all of which I still like to listen to today. I also listen to musicians such as The Cat Empire, Counting Crows, Dark Tranquility, Jonathan Coultan, Lyriel, and Flogging Molly. More than anything though, I am particularly annoyed when someone changes the song halfway through, which to me ruins the experience. I also have the habit when discovering new music to listen whatever I find into the ground, for example when I first heard Gary Jules’ version of Mad World, I listened to that over 300 times.

This will actually be my second time interning at Friend for Youth. When I was presented with the opportunity to work with such a friendly and dedicated staff again for the summer, it was not a hard choice for me to make. I must say I am excited to get another summer’s worth of experiences here at Friends for Youth.

I hope you enjoyed learning this little bit about me!

Friends for Youth's Annual BBQ

This past sunny Saturday Friends for Youth hosted its annual BBQ and picnic activity at Coyote Point. About 30 amazing mentors and mentees brought yummy and healthy side dishes to share from beautiful colorful salads to fancy finger sandwiches. Everyone got to enjoy the outdoors and have hot dogs fresh off the grill. Friendships got a chance to know each other better as they flew kites, jumped rope, played board games, and completed a not so easy Alphabet Scavenger Hunt. 

Tidemark Makes an Impact at Friends for Youth

Last week Friends for Youth teamed up with local start-up Tidemark to conduct a “waitlist activity” for our youth. 

There are about 50 youth waiting to be matched with a mentor at this time, and this was an opportunity for a group of them to enjoy an evening of bowling and pizza alongside a group of Tidemark employees. With the help of the fun and encouraging Tidemark employees some youth bowled for the very first time, and the activity was a great success.

Friends for Youth is grateful to Tidemark for sponsoring this opportunity for our youth!

Mentoring and Teaching - Both Appreciated This Week (and All Year!)

Happy National Teacher Appreciation Week! Friends For Youth would like to thank all our Senior Friends and for all mentors in both formal and informal programs for being both teachers and friends to their mentees. While our mentors enjoy hanging out with their mentees, they are also committed to being positive role models who help to provide guidance for these youth in our communities who are in need of more support. By the end of the year in our program, at least 88% of our mentees visited a college campus and talked about their future. This just goes to show that mentoring does, in fact, work.

Additionally, when mentors instill the belief in their mentees that learning can take place anytime and anywhere, they can be that teacher outside of the classroom who provides that extra bit of guidance once the school day is over. Simple things such as showing their mentees where they work, taking a trip to the museum, or going out to a ballgame are just a few of the many ways in which mentors can help to promote learning. Even baking cookies together includes lots of learning moments! So long as mentors and mentees are engaging in activities that allow for meaningful conversations to occur, there is no ceiling to the amount of learning which can take place. 

So, here’s to you, Senior Friends and mentors around the world! Thanks to each and every one of you for being there for your Junior Friends and mentees. Your kind hearts and willingness to impart the valuable life lessons you have learned with the youth in your community is truly appreciated!

Guest post written by our Communications and Social Media Intern, Josh Tiongson