What Mentorship is all about

I met Karina during the “Jobs for Life” classes put on by Fostering Hope LA for 8 weeks during the summer. Karina was interested in the medical field and being a nurse I felt I could be helpful in guiding Karina in that direction. I prayed about this and Debbie asked me to be Karina’s mentor.  This was the beginning of a beautiful journey speaking love and truth into the life of this precious girl. Karina and I have a lot in common. We both love adventure and learning new things. We both like reading, walking, animals (I love dogs and she loves cats), and Starbucks. We don’t like shopping.

I have made it a priority to help Karina finish high school and she just found out that she will finish ahead of schedule if she continues working as hard as she has been doing. We have plans in the New Year to explore career and college opportunities. I look forward to seeing Karina every week during our scheduled Wednesday visits. I feel that Karina blesses me more than I could possibly bless her. She has grown and matured during the last 6 months in many special ways and I cannot wait for our next adventure.

- Laura, mentor from Fostering Hope LA

There is one word that can describe Laura and Karina’s story: hope. In a world that can sometimes seem gloomy and dark, the experience that Laura and Karina had together shows that there is a way to foster hope into the foster care system. 

There are actually two different definitions of hope. One definition is a “feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.” That hope was created because of Karina’s determination. Karina could have chosen any future for herself based on the decisions she would make in the last few years in the foster care system. She chose to join a program that would prepare her for the future successfully. 

That hope was also created by Laura, an amazing woman who after prayer and guidance from Debbie made the decision to step up to God’s purpose in both of their lives. We are so thankful for the determination of Karina and Laura.

The other definition of hope in Webster’s Dictionary is simple, it is “trust.”

Mentors play a vital part in Fostering Hope LA because they are God’s hands and feet to foster His hope into the foster care system. Yet, they don’t have an easy role. There is no such thing as a comfortable Christian, and that is shown in the mentorship role. However, their role is so vital that mentors step up to the plate again and again, knowing that a large part of their role will be to build trust. 

Laura was perfect for that role for Karina because of her past, her present, and her future. They were connected because of the history Laura had in the medical field. They became closer because of their present interests, and they both have hope for the future that they can be a part of the larger success story of fueling hope into the foster care system in LA and thus changing lives.

January is National Mentoring Month, and we could not be more thankful for our mentors that take more than just their time to say yes to God’s calling. 

Mentors are trust builders. They are determination engineers. They are success-fuelers. They are Fostering Hope.

If you are interested in learning more about becoming a mentor, click here.