Dear Friends, Supporters and Would-Be-Supporters of Futures,

What an honor it is to serve as executive director of an organization that exists for one single glowing purpose: To help deserving disadvantaged Chester County students triumph over daunting odds to make it through high school and head off to college.

Their personal stories sometimes haunt me. The student who looks too frail to have survived the chronic health problems, poverty, and cultural isolation that life has dealt to her. The student whose modest after-school job earnings are crucial to the family’s daily survival. The student who sometimes must scramble to find daily food because there’s no reliable adult at home to provide for him.

Life can be cruel at times. But there is a way to even out the odds for these three students and the 140 others that Chester County Futures is working with at school districts across the county. Two words sum it up: Get involved. This month we’re launching a brand new Talent Bank Mentor program that gives you the perfect avenue for doing just that. Here’s how it works:

During the coming year, we need hundreds of caring, concerned adults to devote just a little time and a bit of talent as special classroom visitors willing to meet and interact with our students. Everyone has some skill, training, talent, special interest or hobby to share to enrich our students’ lives and bolster their courage. It requires just an hour or two of time, once and done. Small favor from you. Big impact on them.

If you’ve ever dreamed of being a hero, here’s your chance. Because any time you serve as a mentor to a younger person, you are indeed taking on a heroic role. Chester County Futures believes that every one of our students deserves to know that this county, so richly blessed, is filled with people who care about them. They are Chester County’s future. If they don’t make it, we all lose.

As a Talent Bank Mentor, you can be a vital part of the safety net of support essential for our students to reach their fullest potential. Please take a few minutes to complete and return the registration form below. Few things you’ll do in your life will matter so much. If you’re still not convinced, stop for a moment and think: Who mentored you?

Most Sincerely,

Catherine Mesaros
Executive Director
Chester County Futures, Inc.