By: Lynda Robinson, Poverty Reduction Taskforce Manager
An incredibly significant part of helping kids get out of poverty comes through connecting them with somebody who has very similar skill sets, somebody who is flourishing in their life.
Every kid deserves an encourager. If I had my way, every single kid would have a positive influence in their life, helping them shape their own picture of what an ideal future would be and helping them identify steps to get there. That is the best way to help them make better choices for themselves. They're going to know by experience that they are more competent. They're going to get out of poverty if that's their situation, they're going to change the landscape of our city.
I'm connecting with all these different people and talking to all of them about getting a group of kids who want to follow what they're doing, asking, “will you mentor them?” And they're absolutely on board. They’re saying, “just tell us when and where”.
These are the experts in the field of those domains sharing with kids, “here's what it looks like to be a leader in this area, here's some of the challenges you'd be helping address”. And you could go from any of the sectors. That's inspiring. I’m so excited to see what happens next!
