Project thoughts - Athlete Mentors

I was glad that I had just come from meeting with one of the Athlete Mentors coordinators, Cathy Coakley, right before class on Monday. Everything was fresh in my mind: after meeting with her, I had started visualizing what I wanted for the project.

I'm planning on following certain athletes who are paired with an underprivileged youth associated with the Newmarket Recreation Center.

The Newmarket Rec Center started The Chameleon Club years ago in an attempt to teach kids from tumultuous backgrounds the essentials of staying active. UNH Athletics became involved a few years ago - in essence, an athlete is paired with one of the children (from elementary school to high school) and does an activity at least once a week with them. They act as a role model one of the kids wouldn't normally have.

Cathy suggested focusing on two pairs: a female mentor and her female kid, and a male mentor and his male kid. That way I could see the different dynamics between the two.

However, after talking in class on Tuesday, I relayed the story of a mentor Cathy had mentioned just last year. One of the skiiers had taught an 8th grader how to ride a bike, make healthy food choices, and find fun outdoor activities. The kid ended up losing weight and walked away with tons of confidence - the two had met throughout McNamara's career at UNH.

Telling the story prompted suggestions from my group on focusing on the personal side of the story. Though it may be invasive, interviewing the children's family members, as well as tagging along and interviewing those who work at the Newmarket rec center, would give me a meatier story. The background would provide the context to have my project mean something.

Now, I hope to target one specific pair, get a full glimpse of their story, including the child's past. What kinds of role model did the kid have before? What do his parents or single parent think? What is he getting out of the program? Why did he join?

I still need to ask what pairs are availabe and decide if I want someone just starting out, or a pair continuing their mentor relationship this year. If I choose the first, I'd get great first meetings and genuine awkwardness or admiration (I hear the boys admire the athletes more than the girls do). But if I choose the latter, I'd have an extensive background to comb through, and specific results to cite.

Cathy Coakley and those with Newmarket Rec would provide a context and have valuable outside commentary.

The bottom line is that the class cemented my idea and helped me go with more of a personal story - I have the focus, now I just need the pair to meet, interview, tape, and creat a story from.