Governor’s Prevention Initiative Promotes Mentoring   Recently, Virginia’s Governor Timothy Kaine announced the initiation of “Prevention Comes First,” a campaign to promote the positive development of Virginia youth. Among the prevention activities to be considered in the campaign includes mentoring programs for the young people across the state. The goals of youth mentoring programs would include providing a positive role model to emulate and with whom they can identify, to improve the child’s feelings about himself/herself and others, to allow the child to set higher goals and overcome challenges, and to encourage and help a child do better in school, both academically and socially. By involving young people in such mentoring programs it is hoped that the youth involved will gain someone who cares about them, someone to help define short and long term goals, someone who helps them see other options, and someone who encourages them to think positively about themselves. Youth mentoring programs have proven to be a successful and cost effective resource in assisting today’s youth to make the right choices when confronted with the challenges and decisions that they face on a daily basis. In the Rockbridge Area, youth have been served by the Rockbridge Area Community Services’ Mentoring Program. Created in 2002 and currently seeking funding for continuation, the RACS Mentoring Program’s mission is to provide at-risk youth in the community a responsible adult mentor who exemplifies appropriate behavior, organizes structured activities, and affords other opportunities whereby mentees will be better able to overcome adverse circumstances, develop a sense of ethical and moral responsibility, and encourage positive community participation. For more information about the RACS Mentoring Program, contact Roger Bowden, Mentoring Coordinator, or Kelly Shifflett, Director of Prevention Services, at 463-3141.

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