My experience back at Cabrini Connections

[Kyle Petit]

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to update everyone on what I've been doing this past week while helping out at Cabrini Connections. I spent a month volunteering at the center back in December '07 and January '08, while home for winter break from the University of Missouri. Since then, I've graduated from college and spent 17 months abroad, where the majority of that was spent teaching English in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. I had a wonderful experience and really enjoyed working with the children on a daily basis.

I just came back to America within the past couple of weeks and have been able to stop into the tutoring center a couple of times to lend a hand with the planning of the Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference. I've personally called and spoken to over 40 different tutoring and mentoring programs throughout the Chicago land area and invited them to participate in the conference either as observers, or as someone hosting their own workshop. I was pleasantly surprised with the openness and intrigue that everyone I've spoken to has shown towards me while I informed them of the conference. The majority of people I've spoken to were not previously aware of the conference, so I can certainly see the importance of contacting them first-hand and informing them of the conference and the benefits that it will bring. I think it's really important to get as many like-minded people and organizations as possible to participate in such a great cause, and to share their ideas about the importance of tutoring and mentoring in regards to youth development. I truly hope that the majority of people I've spoken to will be there in May, and I look forward to meeting and networking with everyone in attendance.

[Daniel Bassill]

Kyle,

Thank you. This shows how important it is that we find manpower, either volunteer, intern, or paid, to help reach out to the various silos and stakeholders to keep them connected to the library and information and networking opportunities that the Tutor/Mentor Connection is hosting. Hopefully others will read what you are doing, and look at what we are doing, and offer some of the resources and manpower needed to do this work on an on-going basis.

dan