Jim Stewart knows how hard it is to raise a child on your own.

That’s what he did, raising his now 23-year-old son as a single parent. This is why Stewart responded to a newspaper article looking for mentors a little more than four years ago. Stewart said that mentors are not expected to act as a parent but rather be there for the child when they need help.

Stewart spends at least two hours a week with his mentee, going to the library or the YMCA and doing homework or other activities. In fact, Stewart requires that all homework be done before they go and do anything else.

Stewart thinks education is so important that he even attends parent-teacher conferences with the mother of the child he currently mentors.

Stewart enjoys mentoring because it lets him help shape a young person and be there when they need help.

&uot;I wanted to keep being involved with helping somebody younger,&uot; he said. &uot;Keeps me young too.&uot;

Stewart has been mentoring Chad Lenze, 12, for about a year-and-a-half now. In that time, Stewart has introduced some activities that Lenze had never been exposed to before. Stewart likes to go ice fishing, but Lenze did not like going out on the ice at all. Since then, Lenze has played ice hockey with friends and did some more ice fishing and doesn’t mind being out on the ice anymore.

Mentoring allows Stewart to give back to the community, which he feels has given him so much.

&uot;You don’t have to be a lawyer or a doctor. Anybody can mentor,&uot; he said.

Lenze appreciates that his relationship has allowed him to experience things that he might not otherwise have the opportunity to.

&uot;It’s a fun thing that kids don’t get to usually do,&uot; Lenze said. Stewart has made a commitment to Lenze to continue mentoring until he graduates from high school.

&uot;Might as well be in for the long haul,&uot; Stewart said.

If you would like to volunteer with Community Mentor Connection, call 379-3409 for more information. They are especially in need of male mentors.