Tuesday, September 7, 2010

The Value of Mentors

In the preface to her book Lanterns: A Memoir of Mentors, children's advocate Marian Wright Edelman wrote about the values her teachers passed along to her.

I cannot recall a single one of the mentors I share with you in this book ever talking to me just about how to make a living or get a job-- worthy and necessary goals. They all stressed how to make a life and to find a purpose worth living for and to leave the world better than I found it...I can't remember the clothes a single one of them wore or the kind of car they drove or whether they drove a car at all. What I do remember is their integrity, courage in the face of adversity, perseverance and shared passion for justice and a better life for children-- their own and other people's--as for education as a means to the end of helping others.