A heartwarming event took place earlier this month at the Governors residence, when David, a remarkable seventh-grader, read, loud enough for everyone to hear, a short and powerful piece about his love for Jim, his friend and mentor, and his appreciation for the mentoring program that brought them together. After a brief pause, the solarium at the Governors Residence filled with applause. As David looked up at Jim, Im not sure whose smile was bigger.

David and Jim Diesing, a recruitment manager with Best Buy, spoke about their relationship as part of a January 7 luncheon hosted by Governor Tim Pawlenty to kick off National Mentoring Month in Minnesota. The audience included State Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen Blatz, House Speaker Steve Sviggum, Assistant Senate Majority Leader Ann Rest, House Minority Leader Matt Entenza, Senate Minority Leader Dick Day, and a dozen CEOs from some of Minnesotas largest companies. (The pair also flew out to Washington, D.C., at the invitation of the White House to sit in the audience for the State of the Union Address.)

David and Jim along with Cassandra, a Bethel College freshman, and her mentor, David Tines, a programmer analyst at Mayo Clinic demonstrated for this group of business and political leaders that mentoring does work.  They proved what research shows. Young people who have mentors are more likely to graduate from high school, enroll in college and be hopeful about the future. In short, they have a better chance of becoming good parents, good neighbors, good employees and good citizens.

In addition, studies have shown that serving as a mentor increases employee satisfaction and job performance. Involvement in mentoring also enhances a companys image. And mentoring impacts the future workforce by helping young people with academics, exposing them to career options.

Because mentoring works, the Minnesota Business Partnership (MBP), composed of 100 CEOs representing some of Minnesotas largest employers, has been promoting youth mentoring among its members. With assistance from the Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota, which works in cooperation with mentoring organizations to recruit and train mentors and provide management assistance, MBP member involvement in youth mentoring has grown from a handful of companies in 1996 to more than 50 companies today.

However, demand for people like Jim Diesing and David Tines is so great, we are expanding our efforts beyond MBP members. In Minnesota, there are an estimated 450,000 at risk young people between the ages of five and 18. These are kids from all income levels in every community across the state who are at risk of making some bad choices because they dont have a positive adult to turn to.  Bad choices might mean abusing alcohol or drugs, falling behind in school, dropping out, then struggling to make ends meet for the rest of their lives. For some, bad choices might mean getting into trouble with the law.

When I was chief judge of Hennepin County Juvenile Court, I saw on a daily basis just how heartbreaking at risk could be. As a district court judge, I saw what happens all too often when these kids grow up. As Chief Justice Blatz has said, the difference between that poor kid and a criminal is about eight years.

But mentoring a caring adult showing interest in a child can make a difference. Thats why the chief justice, the governor, and legislative and business leaders helped us kick off Mentoring Month. You can help close the month strong and carry our momentum through the year by visiting www.mentoringworks.org to see if mentoring is right for you or your company. There are many types of mentoring from e-mentoring to traditional one-to-one relationships. The Mentoring Partnership can help you determine whats right for you or your company. They can connect your company with a school or organization seeking mentors, then help you recruit and train mentors. 

Mentoring works. Join us, and give a young person a chance a better chance at a great life.

John Stanoch is Minnesota President for Qwest Communications and chair of the Minnesota Business Partnerships MBP Connections initiative, which promotes youth mentoring among Minnesotas business leaders.