Java Mentorship Program

Java Mentorship is a recreational therapeutic activity program that is intended to reach the residents who typically are difficult to engage and who don’t attend programs offered in residential settings.

Volunteers tell us that it is often difficult to visit residents as they don’t always know what to do. Therefore these visits often fall by the wayside. The mentorship team approach provides a fun learning environment that keeps the program sustainable over time.

Community volunteers and volunteer residents form a team that meets weekly. They pair up (higher functioning mentors supporting those that need assistance), and visit lonely or socially isolated residents.

These mentors model active engagement and encourage those they visit to participate in programs that would help enhance their social connections with their peers and their social identity.

The program includes a team meeting that happens before the visits in an inviting social setting. The team meetings follow a structured guide that includes ongoing education, needs evaluations, support and recognition.