Plymouth Volunteer of the Week: Camry Crist

Camry Crist has a passion for kids.

Crist, 24, a substitute elementary teacher, works with kids during the summer in the Wayzata HomeBase program, tutors children in reading and math, and loves being a middle school mentor on Wednesdays evenings.

“When Open Door announced they were starting a mentoring program for middle school and high school kids, I knew I wanted to be part of it,” Crist said.

Church of the Open Door, a non-denominational church in Maple Grove, started the “Next Generation” program (Next Gen) in the fall of 2009 with the intent of matching every interested middle school and senior high student with a mentor between the ages of 19-35.

“I want to be accountable as someone who cares about the condition of the youth in our church and in our community," Crist said. "It was important to me to not just talk about it, but to jump in with both feet.”

Two years ago, Crist was paired with Jenna, now a ninth-grader in Elk River. They text during the week, go on outings like the Minnesota Zoo and movies, and enjoy meeting with their small group on Wednesday evenings.

“I love having Camry as my mentor," Jenna said. "My favorite thing is knowing that even if my friends leave me in the dust, and I feel all alone, I know that Camry is just a phone call or text message away.”

Youth from Plymouth, Maple Grove, Osseo and surrounding cities converge on the large church building every Wednesday evening from mid-September through April.

The program focuses on the core competencies (social awareness, identity, interpersonal understanding, conflict and critical thinking). Relational Threads (God, others, self) form the foundation for weekly discussions.

Each mentor and student pair signs a "Relationship Agreement" that includes questions that define boundaries and expectations, and identify issues the student might want to discuss.

Meg Murphy is the Mentor Development Director for NextGen.

“The role of mentors is to invest in the life of a middle school or high school student to help them learn more about themselves, God and others," Murphy said. "Now in her third year, Camry is a dedicated mentor who listens well and asks great questions.”

Student-to-student events create times for the kids to hang out together without the mentors. Events like game night for the students allow time for mentors to meet in “pods,” small groups of four to six mentors. Mentor coordinators (adults over age 35) lead these small group discussions.

NextGen has a monthly service learning event that matches small groups of mentors or students with individuals, programs and organizations across the metro requesting help.

“Being part of the service environments is a great way for us to walk alongside the kids to meet the needs of those who aren’t so fortunate. I’ve had fun doing it with Jenna,” Crist said.

Mentors do not need to be members of Open Door, but there is an extensive interview and background check process.

"Service environments get me out of my comfort zone, and help me realize the world doesn’t revolve around me, that there are other people who struggle,” Jenna said.

Currently, NextGen has about 200 students and 155 mentors. The program will be recruiting through the end of October, Murphy said.