Mentoring will be a new focus of the Lewiston Recreation Division! On August 17, 2021,

The Lewiston City Council accepted and appropriated a $62,500 Park and Recreation Mentorship for Rural Youth Impacted by Opioids grant from the National Recreation and Park Association recently.

Recreation Superintendent Nicole Welch said, “This grant is a great step towards diversifying Lewiston Recreation’s programs and expanding our community outreach efforts. We are looking forward to supporting Lewiston youth by connecting them with passionate community helpers in Lewiston,” according to a news release from Dottie Perham-Whittier, Lewiston City community relations coordinator.

Lewiston Recreation was selected due to meeting several criteria points to include a clear commitment to support youth impacted by opioid use, substance use, and Adverse Childhood Experiences, as well as connecting youth to evidence-based mentoring opportunities. Lewiston Recreation’s application also demonstrated a commitment to advancing equity and an organizational commitment to prioritize justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Welch continues, “Lewiston Recreation has had conversations with community stakeholders regarding engaging youth in healthy ‘out-of-school-time’ programming, including city leaders, police, school department, coaches, non-profit leaders, and other community partners.”

Lewiston Recreation will work on the program structure over the fall, with plans to launch in January 2022. The grant period will end on Sept. 30, 2023, and the grant was made possible through the support of the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile and Delinquency Prevention supporting youth impacted by the opioid crisis in New England and Appalachia impacted by the opioid crisis. As Lewiston Recreation begins planning the youth mentoring program, it will utilize the National Recreation & Park Association’s youth mentoring framework to implement group, one-on-one youth mentorship, and family engagement opportunities within parks and recreation. Elements of Effective Practice materials will also be utilized.

Over the next three years, the grant will assist with program costs related to advertising and kick-off programs; staffing and mentor training & development; activities and initiatives for both mentors and youth; and creating an exciting in-house space.

The process also will engage partners, stakeholders, and youth in the development and design of the program. In addition, free opportunities via grant funding will enable at-risk and low-income youth to have access to recreation and leisure programming.