Working together at school

Editor: Thank you for the great article about McKinley Elementary School in the Oct. 29 edition of the Argus-Courier.

I enjoyed reading about the many groups that are working together with the school staff to support students, and I would like to mention one more local group that has a large presence at McKinley.

Mentor Me Petaluma has had a mentor center at McKinley Elementary School since 2005 and I have had the pleasure of being a mentor there since 2007. I have seen so many children and teachers affected by this wonderful program at McKinley.

Every time I’m there, a teacher or office staff person tells me another story about another student being helped by his or her mentor — kids who never miss school on their mentoring day, kids who speak out in class for the first time, kids who tell their classmates that they should have a mentor, too, and kids who feel a new sense of belonging on campus because their special friend comes to see them every week.

Working together, we all help improve kids’ lives because we know that schools can’t do it alone.

Dana O’Halloran, Petaluma