LINCOLN NE --TeamMates coordinators, board members and mentors from over 100 communities across Nebraska and Iowa gathered to celebrate the power of mentoring at the TeamMates Annual Partnership Meeting. TeamMates leadership joined Tom and Nancy Osborne, the co-founders of the program, to revisit the original inspiration for the program.Communities celebrating their ten year anniversary were honored for their commitment to a decade of mentoring. The following TeamMates communities were established in 1999: Crete, Elmwood Murdock, Falls City, Fillmore County, Hastings, and Wayne.
In addition to programs celebrating anniversaries, new communities were welcomed to the TeamMates Mentoring Program. The following communities were honored for their first year in the program: Cambridge, Centennial, Fairbury, Hershey, Medicine Valley, Milford, Ogallala, Osceola, Seward, Valentine, Missouri Valley, IA and District #29 of Auburn, Peru, Brownville. New mentoring programs were also established with AK-SAR-BEN and CORE Catholic Schools of Omaha.
The TeamMates Mentoring Program relies on outstanding local leadership to provide quality mentoring services across Nebraska and Iowa. The communities of Superior, South Sioux City, Minden and Blair were honored for outstanding mentoring programs. Sandy Hoins of Thayer County, Lee Potts of Laurel, Steve Spiehs of North Platte and Jody Carstens of Omaha were recognized for outstanding volunteerism. Jessica Stokes of Lawrence-Nelson, Kristi Miller of Elkhorn Valley, Vivian Munsen of Hershey, and Nancy Cunningham of Fremont were honored for outstanding program coordination. .
In addition to outstanding program leadership, outstanding TeamMates matches were honored. The following mentors and mentees were recognized for excellence in mentoring: John Nothrop and Andrew Novak of Hastings, Tracy Stolzman and Ashley Dittberner of Norfolk, Ray Doerr and Colin Christiansen of Plainview, Robin Lehr and Corrin Yocham of Columbus, Rev. Don Becker and Richard Parton of Minden and the Paladino Family, including Joe, Theresa, Luke and David of Omaha.
The mission of the TeamMates Mentoring Program is to positively impact the world by inspiring youth to reach their full potential. The TeamMates Mentoring Program was founded in 1991 by Tom and Nancy Osborne to provide support and encouragement to school-aged youth. To join the team and be a mentor, call 1-877-531-8326 or go to www.teammates.org
