A Mentor Reminisces

Emily Nagel, AmeriCorps Mentor at Wright Elementary

Mmm... fall time, like I know it, has finally arrived to my new home of Santa Rosa. I once again feel like I am back in the Midwest with crisp, cool air, vibrant trees, and hot apple cider. I was almost certain that this comforting feeling of fall would be forever absent during my time away from home. And although my favorite season has slowly approached us I have been reminded of what I do on a daily basis that can provide more comforts than those of fall time:

First grader Joe, whom I pick up first thing in the morning, is always eager to sport his perfectly gelled hair, giggling as he calls me Ms. Bagel.

Selomie's curiosity exhibits her eagerness to learn and continues to shine in all of her accomplishments.

For Bianca, creating a rendition of the material from High School Musical is a guarantee that she will earn her sticker for the day.

Grayson graciously throws me high fives and excitedly shares his childhood adventures of exploring the city "Francisco" with me.

Fredy, whom I have nicknamed the "Fredster", initiates conversations about animals, the universe and how the human race could potentially survive without the sun.

And how could I forget Shawn. A student in my afterschool class and a guarantee to brighten my day, he repeatedly tells me about his aspirations of becoming a professional NASCAR driver and his future plans of traveling to Florida to see Jimmy Johnson win the title for another year.

I have realized that I am teaching more than phonetics and sight words, I am being a role model and a mentor. Perhaps my students might not always remember the material but they can count on Ms. Nagel to provide encouragement and instill confidence that will ideally stay with them for their lifetime.

Making A Difference at Wright Elementary

Katie O'Looney, Supervising Teacher at Wright Elementary

Wright students Jesus Rosas and Jazmin Gomez hold a sign they made for Make a Difference Day.

On October 24th, the Wright CalSERVES mentors and 100 eager after school students participated in Make A Difference Day, a national day of service. This year at Wright our students participated in a trash clean-up of the entire school, weeded areas by teachers classrooms, planted over 100 bulbs in planter boxes that will come up in the spring, swept and mopped the stage area, cleaned out lunch bins for teachers, wrote thank you letters to all of the teachers at Wright, wrote letters to elderly citizens and made 2 signs to help people get to Wright School.

Mentor Jay Harris and student Jesus Rosas put up their sign

Last year, our 5th and 6th grade students who were in our Service Club painted the "Wright School -->" sign and finally this year after getting approval, we were able to put up the sign on the corner of Price Avenue and S. Wright road. After our day of service, the teachers and staff of Wright school were very appreciative. Our school secretary told me that she "put up the old sign 20 years ago and was waiting for the day someone would replace it. It looks wonderful". We really did make a difference!

Kawana Knows How To Party

by Cyndie Granato, Team Leader at Kawana Elementary

5th graders with pumpkins they carved

Halloween festivities were in full swing at Kawana's CalSERVES programs last week! Promise Fellow Jenny Gibson worked nonstop to make sure that this Halloween would be one that Kawana kids wouldn’t soon forget. CalSERVES entire room was turned into a haunted house, and mentors got into the act by dressing in costume for the day of Halloween. Even in the rain, kids and mentors all had a blast this Halloween!

Some of the costumed Kawana mentors

Additionally, earlier in the week, students painted/carved pumpkins that had been donated from generous farmers and stores across Sonoma, Napa, and Mendocino counties.

3rd graders with their mentor, Alli Campfield, show off their pumpkins

1st grade Daniel paints his pumpkin