Ahead of the new school year, two mayors on the Peninsula held a joint press conference on Thursday to discuss the urgent need for men to mentor middle school-aged Black boys.
Newport News Mayor Philip Jones and Hampton Mayor Donnie Tuck are asking men of various backgrounds to serve as mentors.
"When you talk about black males, there are individuals that feel like they can't relate to me. They cannot identify with me. It doesn't matter about race, it's just whether or not you are comfortable trying to work or create a relationship with a young person," Mayor Tuck said.
The press conference was held at Crittenden Middle School in Newport News.
"We need men in our community to step forward and become mentors to middle school males," said Mayor Philip Jones.
"Unfortunately, the fact remains that many of our young Black boys in father-absent families have no male role models or men involved in their lives unless they're involved in athletics," said Mayor Tuck.
Pastor Willard Maxwell of New Beech Grove Baptist Church in Newport News works with Young men in the community.
"A lot of time, it's just listening and allowing them to speak out," said Pastor Maxwell.
The Chair of Hampton City School Board, Richard Mason, was in attendance. He said research shows that when a child is paired with a mentor, they are less likely to get in trouble, and it positively impacts a child's emotional health.
However, Pastor Maxwell said finding mentors can be challenging.
"Finding mentors can sometimes be a challenge because so many people work. But if we can work together and have, you know, maybe you have more than one person for a person," he said.
As both mayors make their appeal to the community, Dr. Maxwell says he plans to share the information with his congregation.
"I'm going to meet with the Men's ministry. I'm going to meet with the different ministries of the church and make sure we get some volunteers. They love doing that type of stuff, especially our retired people," he said.
Anyone interested in becoming a mentor can visit these websites:
- If you want to volunteer in Hampton: Hampton.gov/mentor
- If you want to mentor in Newport News: https://nnschools.org/youthdevelopment/mentoring.html nnschools.org/youthdebelopment/mentoring.html