Joyce, right, and her mentee, Paddee
My CfY experience has allowed me to meet Seattle’s youth and learn about their challenges and interests. I love having fun with young people and building lasting relationships with them.
I have a lot of favorite memories of being involved with CfY. I love seeing the self-confidence of several students increase between their first CFY year and their last year and hearing them say that CFY was the best moment of their high school life. This year my favorite moments have been during Family Group outings. It’s hard to pick one: the mentors beating the mentees at Family Fun Center’s Laser Tag, decrypting the clues in the Mission Escape’s escape room, being told “no you are too late” to ride the Holiday Merry-go-round and then being told with an overwhelming “Yes, go ahead and have fun” when I mentioned we were CFY mentors on an outing with students.
My mentee, Paddee and I both like photography and seeing new places. We’re different in that she can text really fast and I can’t. I admire Paddee because she is involved in various clubs and organizations. She loves to be involved and give back to her community. She has a caring nature and met her required high school service hours way before her senior year.
If I could describe my CfY experience in one word, it would be “Community”! I’ve met several people – students, mentors, and staff and have kept in touch with many. It makes Seattle smaller and friendlier when you run into current and former Community members.