VIDALIA — A local organization is looking for a few good men — or women — who are willing to make a difference in the life of a child who has an incarcerated parent.

A mentoring program for the children of inmates has existed in Adams County since 1997, but for this grant period the Adams County Coalition for Children and Youth was given permission to expand into Concordia Parish, Case Manager Alethia Lawrence said.

“We are wanting to really get the program going strong over in Concordia Parish,” Lawrence said. “This is really a service to the community.”

A kick-off luncheon for the program will be at noon today in Police Jury room No. 2.

Those who participate in the mentoring program are required to meet face-to-face with their mentee for at least four hours a month. They are also required to call the child assigned to them at least once a week.

“Our program is really just an extra support to the child and the family,” Lawrence said. “When you have a parent absent, that creates a whole set of issues, but when they are absent due to incarceration it is all of those issues and then some.”

When a child has a committed mentor — and Lawrence emphasized that they need to be committed — it can make a difference.

“When they do that, the child has an extra someone to talk to, someone to listen to them, somebody who can be objective and pull out that child’s strength,” she said. “The mentor can give some outside support and spend time with the child, and one thing they are lacking is time being spent with them. It does help build trust in the child.”

Natchez resident Roy Sessions has worked with the program as a mentor for the last six months, and he said it has been a positive experience.

“You get to be involved with kids again and get to change your mindset about how things are going, get to think in a while different realm,” he said. “You get to feel good about doing something good.”

Following Hurricane Gustav, Sessions said he had an idea for how to bond with his mentee while cleaning up fallen trees on his father’s property.

“I piled them up and thought it would be a good idea to have a bonfire,” Sessions said. “(My mentee) had a chance to experience a bonfire and make s’mores and run around and have a good time fellowshipping.”

Those who want to volunteer have to pass an FBI background check and a child abuse and neglect check.

Other than that, the program is only looking for people who are willing to be there provide support for a child, Lawrence said.

“I think we can all look back in our lives and say ‘Hey, this was really significant in my life.’”