My first thought on reading OP was to essentially write gblake's post above. +1!
Also, as I posted earlier this afternoon on the "fold" thread:
Quote:
Originally Posted by GeeTwo
..inspired, educated alumni change the world.
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We won our first Blue Banner at Bayou this year. I had dyed my beard green, yelled myself hoarse, and was every bit as thrilled as I was when the Pirates won the World Series in 1971 and 1979 or when the Saints won the Super Bowl at the end of the 2008 season, and even more proud as
I had helped it happen. However, the real tug on the heartstrings came at the next team meeting. While we knew that we had plenty of work to do, we gave the students the floor to express what the team meant to them, fully aware that it might take hours. We almost got some "work" done, but at the last call, J. took the offer. He didn't settle for the floor, but the little guy stood on a table. I had known J. for at least four years already, as his family attended my church. Four years ago, J. was painfully introverted. PAINFULLY. Gixxy helped him through an out-of-state mission trip, and then FRC brought him out of his shell more recently. The team was a key part of FIXING A PERSON. That's success in my book that goes way, way beyond a blue banner. J's story was followed by at least a dozen more (all delivered while standing on the table, now that the precedent was established). Every one of them was pushed from a life of mediocrity or insignificance towards a life helping people live better lives. A dozen such stories constitutes unqualified team success in my book.
I'm not going to claim that we've achieved the same level of success as 148, 254, 118, or 1114, but I also know that no one will
ever convince me that I was wasting my time; that's unqualified success by my criteria.
I have not answered the poll, as I do not understand its criteria.
If students and mentors own their role and are proud of it, the team is stronger as a consequence. - Madison [more] 
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