Coordinating Mentors: Always There for the Little Sisters

Coordinating Mentors: Always There for the Little Sisters

When someone asks why we do what we do, one only needs to think of the Coordinating Mentors. Coordinating mentors (CMs) are mostly graduated Little Sisters who now oversee and coordinate the education of groups of 20-50 younger Little Sisters. Their hard work and dedication while they were in the Little Sisters program is matched only by their willingness to pay it forward to help current Little Sisters achieve their goals and dreams.

Distributing Reusable Masks

Little Sisters Fund’s Coordinating Mentors have always been one of the most important parts of the Little Sisters Program. By offering support, advice, and encouragement they help current Little Sisters broaden their horizons and see the benefits of working hard and persevering in their studies. Because many Coordinating Mentors have travelled a similar path as they have struggled through poverty and adversity, they can meet Little Sisters where they are and offer a concrete example of the life-altering effects of a quality education.

Providing Textbooks

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the work of LSF’s Coordinating Mentors has been invaluable. Many Little Sisters and their families have returned to their home villages to escape the overcrowding in urban areas and work on their family farms to provide for their family’s basic needs. The Nepali government has restricted travel and shutdown nearly all public transportation. Schools, the central hub for many LSF programs, have been closed since March. Yet, despite these hurdles, Coordinating Mentors have been working diligently to consistently and frequently connect with the Little Sisters in their care.

Giving Financial Assistance

Coordinating Mentors, like Ganga who mentors 30 Little Sisters in Pokhara, have been finding ways to help their Little Sisters remotely. Devi, a CM for 77 Little Sisters in Chitwan and Nawalparasi, helped conduct four COVID awareness sessions. These sessions in Srijana school and the surrounding community, taught hundreds about the importance of hand washing, wearing masks and social distancing to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Laxmi mentors 64 Little Sisters in Dang and has worked with the Nepal Women Community Service Center to make and distribute reusable fabric masks to keep Little Sisters safe and healthy.

Zoom meetings… Encouraging Little Sisters via text messages and phone calls… Distributing books and supplies for remote learning… The list could go on and on about the many different ways CMs are helping during this difficult time. The one thing that holds all of the stories together is the extraordinary commitment of the Coordinating Mentors to be there for the Little Sisters when they need them most! For that we are eternally grateful!