Don’t Give Up

Catherine began mentoring Jasmine in 2018 when she was pregnant with her first child. When Jasmine learned she was pregnant for a second time, she called One by One and asked if Catherine could mentor her again. Jasmine now has a second baby girl, and she and Catherine have continued to meet and have developed a deep friendship.

Jasmine was quiet the first few times she met Catherine – unsure what to say to her new mentor. But Jasmine’s quietness didn’t deter Catherine. “I knew I needed to prove myself, so I worked on establishing a foundational relationship with Jasmine.” Now, Catherine says when they meet it’s hard to get a word in!

Jasmine has worked hard to parent her girls well. She is serious about our curriculum and takes time to rea through and complete her “Hello, Little One!” baby binder. Catherine and Jasmine still discuss parenting skills, but Catherine says they are now spending more time in Bible study.

Jasmine’s grandfather was a preacher. Catherine says Jasmine thought of herself as a Christian: “She believed in Jesus, but she didn’t know what that meant or how to live out her faith.” Catherine says Jasmine now has a desire to follow God and sometimes attends church with Catherine. She has been working at Amazon, but she is now looking for a new job that would give her Sundays off so she can attend church regularly.

Catherine is helping in the job hunt as well. Jasmine is interested in mortuary science, so Catherine set up a visit with a mortician so she could learn about the job and the skills needed in the field.

Catherine has also mentored Jasmine’s older daughter Skylar, now 4. Skylar’s best friend, twin brother, and mom were killed when a tree fell on their house after a storm, and Catherine has helped Skylar deal with her grief.

Catherine’s face lights up when she talks about Jasmine and her girls; you can tell they have a great relationship, despite their “quiet” start. Catherine says persistence has been key. She says, “It’s my job as a mentor to forge relationships, and it’s important to develop a relationship of trust in order to successfully share parenting advice and God’s love. It can be easy to get discouraged if you don’t feel an immediate connection, but don’t give up hope. Press on. Sometimes you think you’re not having an impact, but you are. And mentoring is more than what you say; it’s also about what you do. Sometimes it takes years, but eventually you’ll see results.”