Proceeds to help create ‘Kick-Start’ program for younger participants
Mike Rowe and his team did a whole lot more for Project JumpStart than “just” serve as our keynote speaker at the Build Baltimore Gala. He also donated his time and talents and that of his film crew to create for us a great promotional video that we could never hope to do on our own. This is just the first of several videos they created for us. We also want to thank Koch, Industries for their incredible generosity in helping make this project a reality.
A portion of the monies raised from the Gala will go toward creating a mentoring program for younger JumpStart participants. “We haven’t had as much success with younger participants,” said JumpStart’s Kate McShane. “The average 18 or 19 year old typically doesn’t take life as seriously, as say, someone thirty or older.. But this is a critical group in Baltimore City and we can’t afford to ignore them.” McShane explained that they engaged Big Brothers Big Sisters to create a mentoring program using past JumpStart graduates to help mentor the younger participants. “When we asked our graduates if they were interested in giving back and serving as mentors, we were overwhelmed with the response. These are graduates who have been out for a while, have graduated from apprenticeship school and are really getting established in their careers.”