Children helped by YMCA mentoring program
Angella Johnson has noticed plenty of positive change in her 8-year-old son, Julian Shumaker, over the past year.
The third-grade student at Broad Street Elementary School has benefited from an after-school program at the Butler YMCA, Johnson said.
Julian began attending Reach and Rise sessions through the Butler YMCA last year, offering an environment where he spend time in an intentionally structured environment with other children around his age.
“It’s a break from household chaos and it’s a break from school chaos,” Julian said. “I just have a lot of fun there.”
Johnson added that the program has helped her son better process his emotions and adjust to becoming a big brother.
Reach and Rise is a national youth mentoring program that uses evidence-based guidelines to ensure the success of the program, Kelly King, Reach and Rise program manager said.
King said there are three groups in Butler County, which include six children in the Broad Street Elementary Group, eight in the Butler YMCA Elementary Group and eight in the Cranberry Township Elementary Group. When another round of sessions begin in late February, an additional new group will be available for teens at the Karns City Area Jr./Sr. High School.
Children are referred to the free program, which is designed to help lift up children who may not get opportunities elsewhere, King said.
“Maybe they come in and they’re a little quiet,” King said.
As the program progresses, she’s seen children come out of their shells and start to express themselves more, connect with the other children and make new friends
“That’s a big goal of the program is to be able to make new friends and try new things,” King said.
Staff members of Reach and Rise are volunteers, called mentors. People go through training before becoming a mentor, which involves directives taken from the national Reach and Rise organization.
One mentor, Maria Malloy starts her weekly sessions with a snack. Malloy said she then leads the group in a check-in.
“Tell us something good that happened with their day, (or) having them recognize and vocalize how their day was, how they are feeling,” Malloy said. “I'll ask for a high and low of the day.”
These formalities help to establish a positive environment for the children, Malloy said, and from there she usually lets the children determine the direction for activities they would like to do.
To Julian, the sessions are the most fun when he gets to unleash his energy and creativity.
“We do games, we do class,” Julian said. “Yesterday, we made stuff out of clay, and I made my mom.”
Johnson explained her son was referred to Reach and Rise by a counselor, who said a group setting might help him process changes in his life.
“His biological father passed away last year, and it was really hard on (Julian),” Johnson said. “His counselor reached out to me and said, ‘Hey, we have this program, it might be able to help him with emotions.’”
Since joining Reach and Rise, Julian has become more social and talkative, according to Johnson, and has adapted to being a big brother to younger children.
King said families can refer their children for group mentoring or one-to-one mentoring by contacting her for group mentoring at KKing@bcfymca.org; or Jessica Burr for one-on-one mentoring at jburr@bcfymca.org. According to King, the next session is full.
Malloy said she is looking forward to being a mentor for children involved in Reach and Rise, returning and newcomers.
“I really look forward to seeing them because they bring me so much joy,” Malloy said. “It’s a great opportunity to give back and give the children an extra set of eyes and ears.”
Julian’s mother is convinced he will want to attend Reach and Rise sessions in the future. Johnson said he asks constantly if it’s time to go to the program.
“It has been amazing, especially with everything he has been through,” Johnson said. “This has definitely just helped him blossom.”
