My church participates in a community program called Kids' Hope that pairs mentors with needy kids. I wanted to help, but since I work full-time at this time and could not mentor, I am a prayer partner with a mentor.

In my particular school district, more than half of the kids can't perform at grade level, so a program of this type is sorely needed. Many of the parents mean well; they just don't know how to help their children either academically or socially.

The little girl for whom I pray is named Erica. She repeated first grade last year, but this year she is on track and even sometimes ahead of the game, so we know the program is of benefit to her. Does it benefit the mentor? I'd say so; this lady's only grandchild lives over an hour away, so they don't see each other very often. Her face just glowed as she told me that her student greeted her with "Hi, Mom!" when she saw her last week.

It is hard to believe that just one visit a week could make such a difference in the life of a child. Wouldn't it be nice if more people thought the way the volunteers in this program do? After all, in the words of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, "If you bungle raising your children, nothing else much matters in life."

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