Hervey Bay and Sunshine Coast teenagers are being supported by a community-strengthening program that aims to empower young people through one-to-one mentoring.
Funding from Carinity's Collaborative Community Projects has enabled Hervey Bay and Lifepointe Baptist churches to offer COACH youth mentoring in local schools.
Mentors from Hervey Bay Baptist Church spend one hour per week during school term with a student participant from Carinity Education Glendyne, to help develop their strengths, build their confidence and set goals.
"Every student has their unique needs, circumstances and challenges. These can range from trauma, learning difficulties, social and emotional challenges, to family dynamic challenges, loneliness and isolation," said Di Priest, the church's COACH Coordinator.
"The mentors bring their lived experience, faith, wisdom and training to walk alongside, listen, ask open-ended questions, and empower the young person to consider new ways of thinking, being and doing life."
Gail Parry, Carinity Education Glendyne's Attendance and Inclusion Support Worker, noted it is "refreshing to see that adults in our community are interested in supporting our young people".
"Sometimes our young people just need some reassurance, to build confidence in themselves and their own abilities," Gail explained.
"Some students are simply in need of a safe adult in their lives, someone who can model positive behaviours, and help them brainstorm issues they might be facing at school or at home.
"One of our students asked for their mentor to assist in a mediation to express some friendship issues that they were having with their peers.
"Another mentor spends time with one of our senior students on a project building and repairing a human-powered vehicle to race in the future."
COACH mentors from Lifepointe Baptist Church in Buderim support secondary students from Chancellor State College.
"It's a very large school of around 3,000 students and they have around 70 referrals per year for mentoring," Lifepointe Local Missions lead Brendon Winters said.
"Students are referred for mentoring through a process with the school's wellbeing team. In addition, parents can request mentoring for their child based upon issues observed within home life."
One COACH mentor connected with a student struggling to come to terms with a devastating medical diagnosis.
A school spokesperson said the mentor's "remarkable consistent commitment" to supporting the student's mental health and wellbeing had been "empowering".
"This guidance has helped the student build confidence, improve their social skills, and face complex challenges with clarity and purpose," the spokesperson said.
"It's clear that the mentorship has had a meaningful impact, not only on the student's wellbeing but also on their overall engagement and enthusiasm at school."
Philip Hamilton, Carinity's Mission Engagement Manager - Community Development and Youth, said the Collaborative Community Projects had funded eight COACH projects over the past four years.
"COACH youth mentoring is an example of how volunteers and the church can engage meaningfully in their local community to help support kids and families doing life tough," Philip said.
"The church teams are demonstrating how this can be done effectively by building trust and relationships in their local schools, to ensure kids feel supported and equipped to navigate really difficult seasons in their lives".
