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During my time at BEST Kids I’ve learned that mentorship is a two way street. I’ve gained many new perspectives and tried new things.  The lessons you aim to teach as a mentor can also serve as a reminder to yourself to follow your own advice.  In particular, the takeaways I will carry with me are to make time to have fun with those you care about and never stop trying new things! ​
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BEST Kids would like to extend our congratulations to Troy Hung, who
has been named the BEST Kids Mentor of the Month for July. He has done a phenomenal job mentoring Frank. As Troy reflected on his mentoring journey, he said, “One of my favorite memories as a mentor was taking my mentee to a rock-climbing peer group. Despite his fear of heights, I was able to encourage Frank to climb to the top and conquer his fear. As someone who loves adventure, I enjoyed the high ropes course peer group the most.”
One of the major hurdles for Troy was deciding which life lessons Frank should learn, in addition to education and finance. One example was educating Frank about the negative aspects of social media. Troy currently works in HR Analytics at Nestle, and he is constantly excited to learn about new technologies that can enhance the employee experience.
During his free time, Troy enjoys playing sports, like softball, frisbee and golf, playing board games and exploring new cultures through travel. When it comes to cuisine, Troy says, “New Orleans cuisine, specifically Jambalaya, has a special place in my heart.” Thank you, Troy for your unwavering support and commitment as a BEST Kids mentor!
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Congratulations to our March Mentor of the Month, Jak’Quan Jackson! Jak’Quan was selected because of his dedication to fostering a lasting relationship with his mentee, Zech. The duo has spent time participating in several BEST Kids peer group activities that have brought them closer together. One of their favorite peer groups was visiting the National Air and Space Museum. Jak’Quan shared that Zech likes to have conversations while eating ice-cream. Jak’Quan has consistently displayed his dedication to his mentee and the BEST Kids program. Thank you, Jak’Quan for your unwavering commitment and dedication!
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Congratulations are in order for our mentor of the month! Sammer and David have been paired for over three years, sharing a passion for anime, comic cons, and museums. They enjoy exploring new places and creating memories together and have been spending time lately revising David's resume and searching for job opportunities.
Sammer generously invited BEST Kids to his workplace, Deloitte, to give our mentees a chance to meet and learn from working professionals in the DMV area. We are grateful for his support.
    When asked about their favorite memory together, Sammer mentioned attending AwesomeCon in 2021, where they chatted about their favorite anime shows, movies, games, and characters and even met the voice actor of Super Mario. Their favorite peer group event was the BestKids Picnic, where they played blindfolded racing.
As a mentor, Sammer's biggest challenge has been helping David find the right job, but he has been supporting him with his resume and interview skills.
In his free time, Sammer enjoys playing chess, listening to the Joe Rogan Podcast, fishing, and football. He has even played chess with his mentee both in person and over Zoom.
    We greatly appreciate Sammer's unwavering commitment and dedication to his mentee and the BEST Kids program. His consistent display of dedication has not gone unnoticed, and we thank him for it.
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Congratulations to our February Mentor of the Month, Michael (Mike) Lints! Mike was selected because of his dedication to fostering a lasting relationship with his mentee, Michael. The duo has spent time participating in several BEST Kids peer group activities that have brought them closer together. One of their favorite peer groups was the Pottery class. Mike shared that Michael loves creating art and they have fun doing hands-on art projects, despite Mike's busy life being an accountant, and real estate agent and recently getting married on March 11! Congratulations! Mike is on the board of BEST Kids and is passionate about promoting our mission of serving foster and at-risk youth in our local community. Mike has consistently displayed his dedication to his mentee and the BEST Kids program. Thank you, Mike for your unwavering commitment and dedication!
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​Congratulations to Stephen Urbanczyk, our Mentor of the Month for April! Stephen was selected because of his dedication to fostering a lasting relationship with his mentee, Emmanuel. The duo has done a wide variety of things. Their favorites include a trip to the Zoo and a ride on the DC Water Taxi. The match also enjoyed several Peer Group events, especially the picnic and the visit to Howard Hospital. 
The biggest challenge for Stephen has been the travel requirements. He spends just about four hours in the car getting to his foster home in the country in Maryland, traveling to DC, and then back again. Thus he can see him only about twice a month, but the two hours with Emmanuel in the car have been helpful because that is when he opens up and tells Stephen things. 
Stephen is a semi-retired lawyer who enjoyed more than 40 years as a trial lawyer; He is still a "Senior Counsel" at his firm and goes into the office in DC once in a while to stay in touch with his secretary and friends. Judy (Stephen's wife) and he just moved to a house on the water in Annapolis; they enjoy boating and finding exciting things to do in their new city. Stephen is also trying to get back to golf. He likes all kinds of food. When he is with his mentee, they invariably go to places like Shake Shack for a burger, fries, and a root beer float. Emmanuel enjoys our outings; Stephen is trying to model responsible adult behavior and give Emmanuel a healthy male perspective on life. 
Stephen has consistently displayed his dedication to his mentee and the BEST Kids program. Thank you, Stephen, for your unwavering commitment and dedication!
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Congratulations to our January Mentor of the Month, Kevin Spicer! Kevin was selected because of his dedication to fostering a lasting relationship with his mentee, Elijah. The duo has spent time participating in several BEST Kids peer group activities that have brought them closer together. One of their favorite peer groups was the Hip Hop Dance class. Kevin shared that although he and his mentee were out of their comfort zones, they had a fun time even while messing up and were able to learn new dance moves with the group. When the pair was first matched, one of Elijah’s goals was to learn Spanish. Not knowing the language, Kevin had to rely on Google and dictionaries to translate to help Elijah with his homework assignments.  Kevin says, “It was a good challenge for both of us, and thankfully Elijah passed and met the language requirements to graduate!” Kevin has consistently displayed his dedication to his mentee and the BEST Kids program. Thank you, Kevin, for your unwavering commitment and dedication!
Anh Doan - "Mentor of the Month" August 2022
Congratulations to our July Mentor of the Month, Anh Doan. Anh and her mentee, Ana have been matched for almost 4 years! During this time, the duo has spent time participating in BEST Kids peer group activities that have brought them closer together. Recently, Ana and Anh have begun dedicating time to sports, and college prep.

Anh was selected as the July Mentor of the Month because she embodies what it means to be an exemplary mentor! From enjoying Salvadoran food with Ana and participating in various BEST Kids activities, to working with Ana as she prepares for college, Anh has consistently displayed her dedication to Ana and the program. Congratulations Anh!

1. What’s your fondest memory from spending time with your mentee?
Enjoying a lot of El Salvadoran food with my mentee. Since we both love to eat, it was a chance for me to learn more about  El Salvador. This experience allowed my mentee to introduce me to new foods, while finding comfort in foods from her home country. 

2. What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced since becoming your mentee’s mentor?
Keeping our outings consistent! With my mentee's ever changing schedule, finding times for us to meet can get difficult. I check in with her often, prior to our scheduled outings to make sure we're good to go. 

3. What is your current job/career and what is something you enjoy about your work? 
I currently work as a data analyst in mortgage lending. I love studying data, and figure out trends from data sets!