Saundra Grant-Sellers became a mentor when she was just a kid—she just didn’t know it. When her father would take the family out to ride bikes or go skating, they’d always invite the neighborhood children along.
“My dad always said there’s always someone less fortunate than you,” Grant-Sellers recalled. “And you never know, just you being there, saying hi, giving a smile, or listening can really change a life.”
Now, as a senior psychology major at UNC Asheville, Grant-Sellers is still mentoring children. She is one of nine UNC Asheville student volunteers who mentor at-risk youth in the Asheville City School system through S.T.R.I.V.E.—Success Through Relationship, Investment, Versatility and Empowerment.
“S.T.R.I.V.E. is strictly extracurricular focused,” explained Jess-Mara Jordan, AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer at UNC Asheville’s Key Center for Community Citizenship and Service Learning. S.T.R.I.V.E. mentors develop activities and plan special outings that will be fun, healthy and educational for children in the Open Doors of Asheville program.
“We create games for them and take them to events on campus, and off campus,” said Grant-Sellers, who will also serve as the travel coordinator for the program this year. Activities and trips have included art projects, cheering for the Bulldogs at basketball and soccer games, and seeing world-class djembe-player Bolokada Conde during his drumming performance at UNC Asheville.
“We have a great group of people who make S.T.R.I.V.E. happen,” said Grace King, who will serve as the student program coordinator for S.T.R.I.V.E. this year. “Everyone brings unique ideas to the table and has a lot of energy with the kids.”
Being a mentor doesn’t mean lecturing a kid about how to live their life, Grant-Sellers explained. “Come with an open heart, an open mind, and a willingness to just listen,” she said. “Kids don’t necessarily need advice, they just want someone to hear them.”
“For me, the most rewarding part thus far was when one of our girls told me about her family and why she was feeling down lately,” King said. “It meant a lot to be someone she could share more personal parts of her life with.”
“We never go in with the idea that we can save the day with all of our knowledge and privilege,” Jordan said. “S.T.R.I.V.E. is more about understanding what kids really want and need and how, as a university, we can work together to fill in some of those gaps.
“At the same time, the kids teach us so much about ourselves: How to be more authentic, that it is ok to sometimes laugh uncontrollably and be loud, and to not pretend that just because we’re ‘grown-ups’ we have all the answers, just to name a few.”
The S.T.R.I.V.E. program is currently accepting applications to volunteer as a mentor in the Fall 2015 semester.
“It doesn’t matter what culture you come from, what gender you are, or what race. What matters is that you are sincere,” Grant-Sellers said. “Come with a nonjudgmental attitude and a smile. That’s important. A genuine smile.”
The deadline to apply is Sept. 4, 2015. More information is available at the Key Center website, or by contacting Grace King at [email protected].