Hope Lutheran Church recently initiated a new program, “Hope for the Future Scholarship,” to provide mentorship to young locals.
The event including the scholarship ceremony was organized recently at the church’s Central Campus. That journey involves pairing young people who are beginning college with Hope Lutheran congregants serving as mentors.
The Rev. Rani Abdulmasih, associate pastor at Hope Lutheran, is leading this initiative.
“Youth are all around us, even in and around The Villages,” he said. “As a church, we want to engage in the lives of young people in our community, to offer support and to accompany them on their journey.”
Abdulmasih suggests that mentors would ideally be paired with students based on shared career goals.
For example, a student majoring in medical science may be mentored by a congregant who worked as a doctor.
“Hope Lutheran has a congregation that’s full of resources, people with the expertise and backgrounds that can help,” Abdulmasih said. “I wish I had that kind of mentorship when I was starting college.”
Hope Lutheran looks for many characteristics while selecting mentors outside the expertise.
“A mentor is a person of faith who will be there if a student needs spiritual assistance down the road, such as if they are feeling lonely and alienated,” Abdulmasih said. “If a student has a mentor, they can share their issues with the mentor, even things they don’t share with their own family members.”
The initial scholarship program invited applications from students of The Villages Charter High School, Belleview High School and Lake Weir High School. A committee then shortlisted 11 students to each receives a $1,000 scholarship, which were awarded at the event.
“It was a joy to see the excitement on their faces, even with masks on, as they received their scholarships,” Abdulmasih said. “It was an affirmation of their hard work and recognition of their accomplishments.”
At the moment, the Church is working on uniting and allotting students with the proper mentors before they head off for the next steps in their lives. In the meantime, the church has planned to make this program annual.
“We are really enthusiastic about the ‘Hope for the Future Scholarship’ initiative,” Abdalmasih said. “We want to accompany students on their journey, and we hope students can take advantage of this opportunity.”
To learn more about the “Hope for the Future Scholarship,” and Hope Lutheran Church, visit hope4all.church or call 33-750-2331.
– Attributed Source, The Villages Daily Sun