Comcast Mentor of the Year Award

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2018 Comcast Vermont Mentor of the Year Award

Thank you for participating in the 2018 Comcast Vermont Mentor of the Year voting!  The public portion of the voting closed on Thursday, January 4, 2018.  The winning mentor will be announced later in January, and will receive the award at Mobius’ annual Mentoring Celebration at the Statehouse (January 31)!

(Click here to jump to the voting form at the bottom of the page.)

 

Meet the 2018 Comcast Mentor of the Year Award Nominees:


Name: Jim Hyde
Program:
Connecting Youth Mentoring at Charlotte Central School/Champlain Valley Union
Length of Time with Program:
4 years
Nomination: Jim is a curious, intelligent, creative, fun and funny, organized, consistent and caring human being who strives to pass his knowledge and joy of life to others. He loves children. He and his wife have three grandchildren and each summer they take each child for one week by themselves so they can really get to know each of them as individuals, rather than as a group. Read More…


Name: Laura Isham
Program: Watershed Mentoring (Franklin County Caring Communities)
Length of Time with Program:
4 years
Nomination:  Laura, who is employed by Customs and Border Protection, has been an amazing mentor to April for almost 4 years. She started mentoring her current mentee just after April turned 12. Laura and April have met consistently for just under 4 years (4 years at the end of January) and have also been regulars at mentor group celebrations and events during that time. They are a great pair, so different in many ways but sharing key common interests that keep them bonded. In addition to the regular mentoring activities like walking their dogs, eating a meal, playing games, and watching movies, they’ve walked the trails of the Missisquoi Wildlife Refuge, summitted a mountain with Rise Vermont, kayaked, participated in a Zombie Run, and visited Johnson State College. Read More…


Name: Mark Johnson & Lynne Tiballi
Program:
King Street Center’s Junior Senior Buddies Program
Length of Time with Program:
7 years
Nomination: “It takes a village,” was the somewhat cliché subject heading of a back and forth email thread between Mark Johnson, Lynne Tiballi, and myself five years ago. Together, we were making a plan to advocate for special services at school for a boy named Hassan, then in 2nd grade. That concept of collective support has become our mantra. Lynne started out as Hassan’s tutor, but quickly realized that their friendship was something special – and she wanted to take Hassan beyond the doors of King Street Center and into the community. Recognizing that Hassan also needed a positive male figure in his life, Mark agreed to co-mentor Hassan with Lynne. Ever since, the two of them have been Hassan’s strongest and sincerest advocates. Read More…


Name: Ruth Murphy
Program: Milton Mentors! (Milton Community Youth Coalition)
Length of Time with Program: 5 Years
Nomination: Ruth has truly gone above and beyond for her mentee, and their relationship has weathered the tests of time as well as the transition from elementary school to middle school, as well as from middle school to high school. Ruth is dedicated, down-to-earth, and a consistent, positive, and caring presence in her mentee’s life. They so clearly feel comfortable and at ease with each other, and have kept a scrapbook to commemorate the fun activities they have done together.
– Sophie Duncan, Youth Programs & Food Access Coordinator, Milton Community Youth Coalition


Name: Terry Palatino
Program: Grand Isle County Mentoring Program & Spectrum Mentoring Program)
Length of Time with Program: 8 Years
Nomination: Terry has been a mentor with Grand Isle County Mentoring for eight years and now with Spectrum Mentoring for one year. She is a mentor who gives her all to her mentee and to mentoring in general. Terry has recruited over a dozen mentors for GIC Mentoring. She contributes in every way to mentoring. She has recently gotten her mentee involved in a coding for girls program at UVM and transports her each Saturday to the class. She has exposed her mentee to theater events and outdoor activities. Read More…


Name: Arliene Pearson
Program: Journey Mentoring Program
Length of Time with Program: 3 Years
Nomination: Arliene is the epitome of “selfless.” Not only did she raise 15 children, many of whom were adopted. She also did so while experiencing the loss of two husbands, both passing due to cancer. Once her last child moved out of her home, she inquired about getting involved in another student’s life. Read More…


Name: Meghan Rowe
Program:
The DREAM Program
Length of Time with Program:
3 years
Nomination: Meg loves telling the story of how she and her mentee, Mani, matched. She laughs as she begins, “It was my first time at DREAM, we were doing a scavenger hunt at UVM. I saw one of the mentees push another mentee into the fountain; then he smiled, pointed at me, and said, ‘You’re my mentor!’.” (Mani was 5 at the time) This story is a perfect description of their relationship. Mani is always testing boundaries and Meg is always there to guide him. Read More…


Name: Wanda Stetson
Program:
Crossroads: Where Cultures Meet (Baba Tree International)
Length of Time with Program:
2 years (since program started)
Nomination: Wanda Stetson has shown up to Crossroads with more than full enthusiasm for learning, participating, and caring for her relationship with her mentee. She has gone beyond our time requirements while also leading another mentoring program for younger kids at Edmunds (through Everybody Wins! Vermont). Wanda builds an empathic relationship with her mentees that bridges cultural differences and connects through mutual trust and respect. She has even been a help with communicating with her mentee’s family members when there have been cultural misunderstandings. Her first mentee she had for over a year with us was more than testimony. In the mentee’s exit interview (before she moved to Pennsylvania) she commented that missing Wanda was the only reason the move was hard. Read More…

Name: Patty Stickney
Program:
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Vermont (Windham County Program)
Length of Time with Program:
2 years
Nomination: Patty’s mentee has had a number of hardships: incarcerated parent, parent released from jail, foster homes, separation from schools, challenges of finding the right school, separation from younger siblings and more. With all the many challenges her mentee has faced in the last year alone, her Big, Patty, has kept following her. Wherever she went, whomever she was living with, Patty worked professionally and with the help of the Big Brothers Big Sisters office to continue to be a positive, consistent person in her mentee’s life. Read More…


Name: Terri Weinstein
Program: Twinfield Together Mentoring Program

Length of Time with Program:
9 years
Nomination: In 2009, when our community was looking to start a mentoring program, Terri Weinstein was one of the first community members to step up – despite the fact she had two children of her own. In the nine years since Twinfield Together first began, Terri has been a consistent mentor and program supporter. Read More…