REACH Mentoring Program

Sponsored by :

Unfortunately, the church has elected to bow out of this endeavor. With the advent of two small children in my life and 3 older daughters to help with college applications, homework, cross-country, dance, and science fair, I am not currently able to support this work. When I can, I plan to volunteer at our local Boys and Girls Club. They support around 100 children every day and while it is in a slightly different neighborhood, there should be some overlap in the children being served. I would hope to find some old friends among them.

please call the church (805-529-1401) or Anne Cooper (805-523-9748) for more information. You can download a manual in Word format of how to set up your own program. Or look through the HTML manual here.

Who:

The mentors are members and friends of MUMC. Some are high school students and many are parents. We invite students in grades K-5 to meet with us. We also invite anyone with an interest in being a mentor to join us. Generally, we have about 50+ children in attendance, ranging from toddlers who come with an older brother or sister to middle school students who need help some days and some days provide help.

What:

REACH stands for Reading support, Enrichment, Arts and crafts, Counseling - teens, and Help with homework.

We can help with spelling lists, reading, report writing, math assignments, science. . . This is an informal arrangement. Students are encouraged to drop by if they need or want help and encouragement. We will also have a burrito bar for dinner. There is no cost for either dinner or the tutoring. Since this is also a mentoring project, some children come without homework. We also have activities they can participate in and a reading room where they can enjoy a large collection of books. Some of the best experiences are the one-on-one conversations that spontaneously happen. During the summer, we frequently have outdoor activities such as playing in small pools on the front lawn, or roasting hot dogs, or pounding nails into scrap lumber.

We recently qualified for grant money from the City of Moorpark. Their objective in funding us is to strengthen families and help children. This enabled us to hire some staff so we are not totally reliant on volunteer help now. It is wonderful to have a counselor available for the teens, for example. And now we can cover 2 days each week instead of just one.

When:

4:30pm to 6pm every Wednesday, throughout the year. We have a simple dinner a little before 6pm.

4:30pm to 6pm every Monday, throughout the year. Snacks are provided instead of a meal.

Where:

Mahan Hall at Moorpark United Methodist Church, corner of Third and Flory (across from Flory School).

Why:

Several of the mentors have commented that this is a high point of their week. It can be very rewarding to get to know these children and it makes you feel very rooted in this community. This is our contribution to the next generation. If we don't take care to nuture responsible human beings, who do we expect to take care of us when we end up in a nursing home? We also hope to show children an alternative to wanton mischievious and potentially criminal activity and to get them hooked on the excitement of learning. A good quote from John Fischer is included in this poster (created by Anne Cooper).