The Good and Bad of T.R.A.C.life Mentoring Program
by Rachael Folds, Foster Mom
I have absolutely nothing but praises for T.R.A.C. It has been such a huge blessing for my family. I am a foster parent and I minister to kids who come from hard, hard places! I also come from the old school of thought that “it takes a village!” I praise God for T.R.A.C. being part of that village.
My boys have gone to T.R.A.C. for a couple years now, and they thoroughly enjoy camp. They are always eager to share what they learned and who they met once they are back home. I love that T.R.A.C.life mentoring program digs deep, uncovering the potential in each child and giving them hope for their future.
My boys look forward to each mentoring moment. They have bonded with their individual mentors, and I love it. One of my sons have never really had a positive male role model in his life, but then came Peterson. He has made such a remarkable impact in my son’s life. Same with Josh and Jorge as well. These mentors have given my sons what I could not, positive male interaction.
And I guess this brings me to the one downside of T.R.A.C.life. There are so many kids that need the interactions that my boys experienced but there are just not enough mentors. Yes, mentoring is a time investment, but the return on the time invested is so well worth it! When you see kids from broken homes and other hard places begin to trust again, it’s worth it. When you see kids begin to believe that their life has purpose and meaning, it’s worth it. When you see kids make a commitment to Jesus, it’s worth it. So, other than not having enough volunteers/mentors, I have only praise for T.R.A.C. and T.R.A.C.life. And it’s my prayer that the Father will speak to the heart of His people, and they see the need to reach out and help.
NOTE: Miss Rachel Folds has fostered over 70 kids in her life adopted several. A is one of her boys and she talks in this note about the influence his mentor Peterson has been on A. Peterson is helping A practice for his driver’s test. He’s helping him think about his future by taking him to different businesses to explore his options, including sports trainers which is something that interests A.
Peterson has been an amazing T.R.A.C.life mentor. He drives an hour one-way to spend time with A and has been a huge influence in his life, especially when A was going through rough patches at school. Peterson talked through the situations and discussed the good and bad choices he had made.
