Kinship is Back!

Kinship is Back!
Dear Editor-
    Kinship of Iron County Kids (KICK) is back! Covid forced us into a long hiatus, but we began putting KICK back on track this January. We’re tackling the setbacks that arise, because we believe in what KICK means and accomplishes for our local youth!
    KICK is a non-profit 501(c)(3) that matches Iron County kids with responsible, caring adults in a mentoring program. We are an affiliate of a national organization called Kinship, Inc. We do not receive any government or municipal funds; we rely solely on our community for donations, support, referrals and volunteers. We’ve been around since the early 80’s.
    We currently have 15 KinKids in Iron County (both Forest Park and West Iron students). Five of those students are al-ready paired with their mentor, but there are 10 KinKids en-rolled who do not have mentors and we hope your readers may feel compelled to get involved! 
    So, what can your readers do to help us? 
    Become a Mentor. Being a mentor is a commitment of about one hour a week or roughly four hours a month. During that time, you will pick your KinKid up (most likely from home) and go do something fun together for an hour or so and then deliver your KinKid back home. It’s that simple! In consistently spending an hour a week with the same student, month after month (ideally year after year) you help to nurture confidence, independence and build a sense of self-worth in a youth who may not receive that nurturing otherwise. It is a simple concept that has far-reaching rewards for both you and the KinKid. I would love to talk to any of your readers who might be interested. I would also love the opportunity to visit local businesses and talk to employees about being mentors. (And yes, being a mentor means being vetted!)
    Provide an enriching experience. Our Mentor-Kinkid Matches are always looking for fun things to do together. Do you own a business that can provide gift cards for ice cream or pasties or early dinners/snacks of any kind? Can you donate movie tickets, golf time, life jackets for boat rides, fishing gear, snow gear, sports gear of any kind? Do you own property that would allow mentors to provide quality time and experiences to our KinKids? We would love to partner with area businesses or individuals on this level.
    Donate. Eight to ten times a year we do group events. These are fun events that our staff creates so all the Matches have to do is show up. We provide food and entertainment -- swimming, pizza parties, lake-side BBQ with games, ice fishing, boating, snowmobiling, hiking, crafting, etc. We pay all the expenses, provide all the props and equipment for these group events. For instance, we were recently gifted several used bikes by the Iron River Police Department (THANK YOU IRPD!!!). 
    We’ve inventoried all the bikes and have made a list of all the parts we need to make each one safe and road worthy. The plan is to host a group event to teach the students about caring for their bicycle and cover safety and road etiquette. Then students can decorate a bike and each will receive a helmet and bike lock. How cool is that? This is an example of the kind of support your readers provide! 
    Contact us. Visit our website www.kinshipIC.org and let us know how you’d like to help. We have forms to apply to be a mentor or to refer a kid to KICK. Keep an eye on our Facebook page to keep up with our news and activities. You can also call me at 906-284-9885. Sincerely, 

Kathlene (KL) Long
Coordinator 
Kinship of Iron County Kids