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A Message from the Director
of
the
National Amachi Program
Rev. Dr. W. Wilson Goode, Sr.
“As the son of an incarcerated father I learned firsthand the importance of
mentoring. It changed the
outcome of my life from
an almost certain trip to prison to becoming Mayor
of the fourth largest city in the country.
So "who knows but what God
can bring us through these
children”. I hope you will help us help these children.
Amachi
is a Nigerian word which means
“Who
knows but what God has brought us through this Child”
America’s
most isolated and at risk children are the estimated 7.3 million
children who have one or both parents under some form of state or
federal supervision. Without
effective intervention 70 percent of these children will likely follow
their parent’s path into jail or prison.
The Amachi
mentoring program was developed to provide them with a different path
– by establishing the consistent presence of loving, caring people of
faith in their lives.
The Amachi
program has achieved phenomenal growth since its founding five years
ago. It has been a documented model and catalyst for a new movement that
has helped rescue at least 30,000 children from a highly probable trip
to prison.
Amachi
has not only had a beneficial impact on children, but also on the
churches, causing many of them to include outreach as part of their
ministries. There are about 3,000 congregations involved with these
children across the country. In many states, the Amachi
program has brought together the corrections systems with faith-based
groups and youth-serving
Amachi
made its first match in Philadelphia in March 2001. The Philadelphia
program has served more than 2,000 children since its inception.
Today, there are 240 mentoring children of prisoner programs
across the country, which have served more than 30,000 children of
prisoners; 10,000 of these children were placed in relationships in the
last year. Sixty-five percent of the matches last more than one year, 42
percent for more than two years, and 21 percent have been matched for
four years or more. Texas recently became the first state to fund a
statewide program when Governor Rick Perry established Amachi
Texas. Interest in establishing programs has spread internationally to
Jamaica, the Virgin Islands, the United Kingdom, and Nigeria.
Amachi
Mentor Makes a Difference
Although
many teens are convinced that they know everything and are more
interested in hanging out with their friends than maintaining a
relationship with a mentor, this
is not the case for 14-year-old Justin. Justin was matched in 2001 when Amachi
Philadelphia first began making matches. He doesn’t believe he will
ever outgrow his mentor and said he wants to stay with him as long as he
can. “He’s a good role model, and he treats me like his son,” said
Justin’s. Justin’s four brothers ages 10, 11, 13 and 18 years old,
also were matched with mentors in 2001.
Justin
and his four brothers have lived with their aunt since he was a baby. He
said having a mentor who serves as a male role model has been a critical
component of his development. “[He] shows me how a man is supposed to
act and be,” said Justin. It’s important “having a man to talk to
about problems that I have that I can’t talk to a woman about,” he
added.
Prior
to being matched with a mentor, Justin said that he was not involved in
any extracurricular activities outside of his church choir. In addition
to the choir, now he is in Boy Scouts and mock trial, and is a junior
deacon. Justin said his
mentor, who is also a Scoutmaster, was the first to introduce him to Boy
Scouts. Justin has been
active with this organization since he was matched.
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