why do we mentor?

[Racer26]

For me, I know I mentor because I've seen how significant FIRST's impact on me and my career was, and how its helped me to be successful in young adulthood.

I see bits of myself in some of the kids.

I'm also old enough and wise enough to recognize that humanity is going to have to deal with some extremely huge issues within my lifetime, and we're going to need smart people to pave the way.

The impending retirement of the baby boomers is going to cause significant economic turbulence, in the form of stressing the health care system to its limit, and leaving a massive void at the top of the workforce.

Right now, locally in Toronto area anyway, my generation is suffering from a huge unemployment issue. This is partly caused by the abolishment some 10-15 years ago of the mandatory retirement age of 65. This has caused the people at the top to not exit the workforce until 70 or 75. The workforce, instead of correcting for this, has remained built around a 45 year working life, and thus, the top isnt exiting, so the middle never moves to the top, and the entry level positions aren't being vacated by people moving up.

Soon, though, the declining birth rate is going to catch up with the retiring baby boomers, and there will be this big void where the retired seniors were. Then the remaining workforce is going to have to support the retired boomers. It will stress pension plans, health care systems, and more. The ripples will be huge.

[Al Skierkiewicz]

I believe youth is contagious. I want to catch as much as I can!

Really, there are very few things in life as beautiful as a person's face when they acquire knowledge. I never tire of it.

[ebarker]

The Satisfaction of being a mentor is here

[tsaksa]

Originally Posted by MechEng83

I mentor for many reasons:

Little kids want to grow up to be firemen and doctors. FIRST kids want to grow up and be engineers.

Not all of them. I still remember when my daughter was in Kindergarten. After about the second or third week, when I came home from work my wife said "You should ask Jennifer what she did in school today.

Me> "Jennifer, What did you do at school today."

Jen> "Oh, We all got to say what we wanted to be when we grow up."

Me> "And what do you want to be when you grow up."

Jen> "I said I want to be an engineer when I grow up."

Me> "Really?"

Jen> "Yup, I decided, I want to be an engineer.

Me> "And why is that? After all a lot of kids your age don't even know what an engineer is."

Jen> "I just think that it's the greatest job in the whole world and I know that's what I want to do when I grow up"

Me> "Wow Jennifer, you don't know how happy that makes me. You want to grow up and be an engineer just like your dad!"

Jen> "What? No dad! The kind that gets to drive the train!"


Oh well. You can't win them all. Actually both daughters eventually decided on relatively technical non engineering careers. But, I could not be more proud of them even if they had both chosen engineering.

[kwojcik]

For the one year that I was in FRC, it completely changed my life. There is nothing more satisfying than giving the opportunity that I had to others.

[rsisk]

I am continuously impressed with the quality of people I meet in FIRST, and I have seen first hand the impact this program has on the students.

[MooreteP]

I was an engineer for ten years and decided to try a new career, Education.
I foolishly thought that it would be a little easier than working with machines as a reactor engineer.
I left my job and used some savings to get a masters in education.

Boy, was I wrong. You can admire machines, but you don't really love them. A machine can be left alone and does not have an emotional component.
I never feel, as a teacher, that I am doing a great job. There is always more that I can do to be better and serve my students.

In 1998, at Rutgers for my first FRC competition, with my first team, 195; I started crying as I saw two of my most favorite things, students (our future), and engineering (my passion) come together in the most beautiful synergy under one roof.

This program has enabled me to make a difference that I believe is good for the future of humans on this planet.

[rsisk]

...because when you mentor, you receive Christmas presents like this:

hey mr. sisk, this is for you and mrs. sisk.

you guys started as just mentors to me. another two people that are my robotics teams. well ok... but over time you two have become more than that to me. You've become life long mentors to me. because you've helped to teach me responsabilty, and deadlines, that when something is due its due. which has made me a better person. You've watched me grow for 4 years but what you taught me with responsibility specifically i will never forget that.

another thing is that you brought me into F.I.R.S.T, and i would never change that. you've taught me alot, and when i get out i plan to build my own robot. And stay a team mentor. so yeah...

thanks.