Looking for a Mentor for your teen over the summer? Consider a Veteran!
With summer break in full force, parents of middle and high school age children often find themselves looking for activities to fill their teens days with. We at Summerset celebrate our Veterans and truly enjoy the amazing conversations we have with our Veteran residents daily.
Many Veterans truly enjoy talking about their time in the service and the sacrifices they made for our Nation. And when they get the opportunity to help guide or mentor a young teen or young adult who might be considering the military, it benefits everyone involved. First hand stories and experience of their years in the military help shed light on what things were like decades ago. We live in such a digital world now, that taking the time to actually sit down and have an engaging conversation is a fading art form.
We encourage young adults to consider volunteering their time with Veterans and to look into developing a friendship when possible. Veterans love hearing about the new technology, even though they may not sometimes understand it completely, just discussing it opens up a curiosity within that they enjoy.
The essence of mentoring is the sustained human relationship: a one-on-one relationship that shows a person that he/she is valued as a person and is important to society. This benefits both parties as the contribution of history that Vets provide and the enjoyment that teens get from hearing real life experiences create a mentoring/friendship bond.
Many factors influence why some people have successes in life and why others have a more difficult time. Economic circumstances, upbringing and many other factors play a role. When teens and Veterans break down barriers it doesn’t matter who is or was successful. What matters is the bond that is being created to establish a friendship and/or mentor relationship to help each other.
Some of the best sharing of stories and questions may occur during a checkers game or walking in a park. It is through activities that everyone will begin to enjoy and open – but it takes time. So having fun together on several occasions and learning from each other is the foundation for a good bond.
There are numerous links and information online that can help guide teens in the direction of finding a Vet to connect with.
Here are just a few & we hope you enjoy the connection that awaits you:
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