Good morning, good morning, good morning, and welcome, welcome, welcome it. It's time for our community connection right here on Kay one, the one you trust, and I'm blessed to have our young scholars at Bartlesville in here.
Ms. Cameron. How you doing today?
I am doing wonderful.
You're always wonderful.
I try to be.
He comes in with a smile. All the time. You brought France, you brought Bethany Burns in today. How you doing, beth I'm doing good.
Thank you.
You're a senior right, yes, right here in Bartlesville. Yeah, it's good to be a bruin. Huh yeah.
Yeah. Well, we're going to be talking about young scholars. We're going to talk about mentors. We're also going to get Bethany's aspect on this, and we're going to also talk about ways that we can propel.
This forever and ever and effort. First of all, we need mentors.
We need mentors absolutely. I was in here a couple months ago. We were looking for mentors. We did get a couple, yay, yeah, so thank you, But we are still looking for mentors.
We have students that need a mentor.
That just helps guide them through the process of life and through the process of you know, the applications of college and just being there for them.
This is what Young Scholars is all about, is guiding kids who never really had the chance to see or be around people.
And that's what we hope to do.
I mean, we take kids we started in the sixth grade and they do have to be in the program by the tenth grade, and we just tried to provide them with education and resources that is going to make them successful when they get to college, because you know, a lot of kids can get to college, but they don't really know what to expect. They've not had a lot of financial classes, they've not had a lot of leadership classes, they've not had just the we're going to be talking about public speaking.
She's gonna get real excited about that. Just different things that you're going to encounter in college.
And if they can encounter it sooner than when they get to college, they's so much more successful and so much more prepared.
You know, a guy like me, I didn't know anybody who went to college. I mean I heard some of my older friends going to college, but that whole aspect was Okay, you're going far away.
I'm not going to see you and you're going to learn something. Okay, great, what's that mean for me?
Now?
I wound up.
Going to college, but I got to tell you I had a mentor that really made it a lot better than what it could have been. What is your h your whole experience been so far with this since becoming a part of the Young Scholars.
Bethony, it's been good. I do have a mentor. I've had her for a couple of years now. She does help a lot, like apply for college and whatever, and I do go to financial classes we talked about for college and stuff.
So eye opened her, isn't it.
Yeah.
Oh, that's how it's done.
And it's still hard for them to understand until they actually get out there and do it. But hopefully once they're out there doing it, then they can fall back on some of the classes and some.
Of the stuff that they've been taught.
I have a daughter who's a teenager and her first job, she wanted to know who this mister Fikau was.
Me too, because he keeps taking her money for her check.
But you know, that's one of the things that's kind of an eye opener there too, is that when you get paid. It gets shared a little bit too, so you got to be prepared for that. Now, do you feel a lot more confident going into this college thing coming up than you did, say, maybe a year or two ago.
Yeah, I mean I'm still scared, but like I think she did have a little healthy here. Yeah, I just I think I do have more preparations and whatever. My mentor will be there if I need help.
She has a great mentor.
Well, you're not going to be there alone.
You know, you can always pick up the phone and say hey, and that mentor can guide you right through there.
And sometimes it's easy as that. For a mentor, it's easy.
It's answering a text, maybe not at midnight, but entering a text, man for a phone call, or you know.
Just just answering her quick question.
It's not always an extravagant let's go out to eat and let's go watch a movie or let's go do this. I mean, it can be that, and that's fine for them, but sometimes it's just another sounding board.
I think that really that really helped.
I mean I'd sleep easier at night if this was going on a little bit earlier in my life. But this is a wonderful resource that we have here in our community, and we do need mentors. Now you've been working with Big Brothers, we do.
We partner with Big Brothers Big Sisters majorly. They help us out tremendously on that. They vet everybody and they kind of monitored that relationship and Daniel and myself and Todd work really close with that. So we currently need I believe three or four mentors. But we are also wanting to open up this program to some more students in the spring semester. In order to be able to do that, we have to have mentors.
So let's shoot. Let's shoot for a dozen.
A doesn't a dozen?
I like that?
I like that.
I'd love to get to the point that I have more. I have a waiting list of mentors. I think that would be fun.
That would be fun.
Now, in order to keep this going, this is a nonprofit organization, nonprofit and we rely on of donations, Yes, sir, And sometimes it gets to be around tax time. Folks are going well, who have they shared with lately? Well, please consider young scholars.
Of yes, so they can go to our website which is Bartlesville scholars dot org. Or you can come buy our office. We're in the RSU building on the eighth floor. You can call my phone number, which is on our website as well. You can send, you can wave me down in the street whatever I would love.
Don't I have that conversation.
We also have a really big fundraiser coming up. It's a little early, but I'll go ahead and mention it. We have our annual fundraiser called Uncork Your Supports. It's a great one. It is scheduled for February twenty second. Tickets are on sale on our website and it is a wine and food pairing And every year we choose a different country, and so this year the country themes not really a country, but the.
Theme is Latin America.
Oh my goodness, we've already chosen the wine, and I promise you it's amazing. I cannot wait for the food and I also cannot wait to announce what twenty twenty sixth theme is.
Goodness, So who you pairing up with?
As far as the food, we are using melodies.
Right right there in the building absolutely.
Absolutely always has a great food.
No, we just go to the website there and we can purchase our ticket.
Yes, all right, And where are you going to hold this.
It is that Saint John Father Lynch Hall.
Oh great, I know right there at the keeler. Yeah.
Yeah, So there you go, and we'll be back on later talking more about that. But if they they know they want to go, and we're still looking for sponsors, we still have a few sponsorships left.
Silent auction is a big deal with that event.
So if you want to if you've got a business and you want to put together a basket or one of the things that you do in your business, we'd love to showcase that, put that in our silot auction. That's always a good way to get your name out there about a business put together a silent auction.
So we're looking for that too.
Well, this is great, beth Andy.
I don't want to get too personal here, but if you picked out a college, not yet.
We keep throwing her, We keep throwing her things to think think about this, think about this.
You always thought about the building you're in, you know.
And one of the great things as she's completing this program is that she will get a scholarship from us any one where she's going. The program is much more than a scholarship program. It is a mentorship program. It is a building building you up and ready for college.
But in the end they do get a college scholarships.
And then a four year degree and hopefully they come back to Bartlesville and kind of start the cycle over of giving to the community.
And that's starting to be a thing. Four years and I didn't think that you'd ever come back. And next thing, you know, hear five, I'm home.
So a fun story.
We just elected our new board members and one of our new board.
Members was a student. So she went through the program.
She went to college, she came back, got a job in Bartlesville, and she is joining our board of directors. And I just think that is a huge testament to the program.
Bull circle, full circle, Bethy, what are you going to study?
I want to do nursing.
Yeah, very good, very good. We need them.
We lot of One of my daughters is a nurse and another one is a physician's assistant. It's a wonderful it's a wonderful vocation. It's also a calling of the heart.
You know that.
I didn't have to tell her, No, knew that this is wonderful. Now, where can we find you on the world Wide Web again?
We are at Bartlesville Scholars dot org or anyone can reach me on my phone which is nine one eight seven six six six six seventy five.
Do you have a Facebook page, dude?
Oh my goodness, yes, Young Scholars of bartles will find us on Facebook. We recently just did a day of giving where we raised enough money that mister Earl Sears has to kiss a real pig.
And so I'm hanging with this.
But with this, I bet Earl's happy to do that.
He is so excited to do that.
So we are working on finding the pig and getting that all set up. So you can watch our Facebook because I can promise you something is in the works that is going to be very entertaining and adorable and adorable goodness.
Thank you for sharing the good news absolutely, Young Scholars of Bartleswoo, ladies.
Thank you very much.
Thanks for your time.
Married Christmas.
We'll be talking to you again coming up about the big event in February soon