Kinship Partners in Brainerd Seeking Mentors for Its Youth Programs

Kinship Partners, based in Brainerd, is currently serving 200 kids and has been asked to take on more. But for them to support more kids, they’re in great need of mentors.

Kinship Partners serves youth ages 5-18 in Crow Wing and southern Cass counties by providing each of them with a mentor, with programming running for each child until they graduate from high school. With January being National Mentoring Month, Kinship is in need of help to support children currently on their waiting list.

“We have probably 22 kids on the waiting list right now that we’ve received paperwork for that want to be processed,” shared Amy Gray, executive director for Kinship Partners. “We have 15 kids who are ready, they’ve done their interviews, got their applications in, they’re looking for a mentor. So, we want to do a big push for that this month but all year round, we do need a lot of mentors.”

Anyone over the age of 18 that’s considering or wanting to invest in a youth’s life will need to undergo a thorough background check first, including motor vehicle checks for safe drivers and in-home interviews to make sure mentors can provide a safe environment for a child.

The number one thing that Kinship Partners wants to get across is that being a mentor is not as challenging as some would think.

“I think a lot of people are really intimidated by the idea of becoming a mentor, but it’s really so much easier than people anticipate. It really is just about coming and making a friendship and being a friend to a kid,” said Gray. “So, if you have the capacity to give and you like kids and want to hang out, that’s all we’re looking for.”

Anyone interested in becoming a mentor can fill out an application at the Kinship Partners website.