De’Mair was a little nervous to meet her mentor Heidi, who remembers that hesitancy on the day they signed their mentor-mentee agreement.

“You know, it's kind of an adult decision for a kid, because you have to sign this contract. You're going to do good in school and you're going to show up, and this kind of strange person’s in the room with you.”

Despite that uncertainty, they tackled Mount Everest together.

“The puzzle,” said De’Mair with a smile and described her efficient approach to puzzling.

“I was like a yes and no machine. Heidi would hand me a puzzle piece and I would try and fit it and then I would throw it to the side and say no, or say yes (if it fit somewhere).”

Heidi noticed in elementary school how caring and friendly De’Mair was, and that’s still true in middle school.

“If you were to walk with De’Mair down the hallway between classes, everybody gets a high five, everybody gets a hello, a nod. Every teacher will get an acknowledgement and they all know her by her first name.”

They agree that transition to middle school was one of the hardest things they have faced. Heidi explains.

“That was kind of rough, just getting adjusted to that. The classes are larger and there's more people in the hallways and you have to get used to new roles. It's hard to do that even as an adult.”

De’Mair is grateful Heidi reminds her of her strengths even when she is struggling.

“She kind of tells me where I'm wrong and where I'm right in some places.”

Heidi knows that the big growth happens when you go through “not so great” times.

“You can't really grow from what happened unless you kind of think about what happened and how you can do something a little different. It's not something we're really focused on, but every once in a while, it does happen. And we'll say, why did that happen? And what could you have done differently?”

For De’Mair, Heidi is “an extra person she can share or talk with.” Whether it’s a service project that lifts up somebody else’s spirits or a hard problem they are talking through, De’Mair has grown to trust Heidi.

“From when I was in third grade to now, she knows me better. She knows if something's wrong or if there’s something I'm worried about.”

Heidi is enjoying the journey.

“I'm excited to watch her just grow up. She's filling her shoes. She doesn't like to say she is, but she's a great student – intelligent and active and caring.”

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