Volume 16 Number 2 • 2003

The Texans are Coming!!
PEER-TO-PEER MENTORING IN THE SOUTHWEST

By Evelyn Tileston, Executive Director Independent Life Center, Inc., Craig, Colorado

Editor’s Note: Each year through the Rural Independent Leadership Mentoring Initiative (RILLMI), the Rural Institute and the Association for Programs in Independent Living (APRIL) offer two rural Centers for Independent Living the opportunity to participate in the Peer-to-Peer Mentoring program. Below, Evelyn Tileston shares her experience with the peer mentoring provided through RILLMI.

The cry went out around the office, whispered from one person to another with great excitement. “Why does it have to be Texans?” someone muttered, an expression of Colorado’s regional rivalry with our neighboring state.

In 2002 when I learned about the Peer Mentoring program, offered through the Rural Independent Living Leadership Mentoring Initiative (RILLMI), I knew right away that it was just what the Independent Life Center needed. We were growing and I was beginning to feel overwhelmed. What will happen when growth presents a problem that The Great Evelyn doesn’t know how to solve, I wondered?

The Value of Peer Mentoring

After listening patiently, Linda Gonzales, the Director of APRIL, suggested that Ron Rocha, Executive Director of the Austin Resource Center for Independent Living (ARCIL) in Austin, Texas might be able to help. Ron and I began to talk. He listened to my concerns both as an executive director of a growing organization, and as a blind person supervising sighted staff. He had been there.

We agreed that ARCIL mentoring our center would be helpful. Preparing for the mentoring visit, Ron and Mary Ann Hernandez, ARCIL’s Chief Financial Officer, asked us to send to them many things: our board minutes for the past six months, our budget, our policies and procedures, our brochures as well as our informational materials. We did it all and waited with some trepidation. By sending Ron and Mary Ann this information before their visit, they had time to study it and suggest changes and improvements.

When we finally set the dates for them to visit, the first wave of panic hit. What are we going to do with them for two whole days? We know they have to eat, so we’ll have a dinner in The Barn (an historic building now used for social events). Anna Adams, Board Secretary and one of our founders, brought out her collection of glass dishes, her candles, and coordinating linen. We spent Sunday afternoon sweeping, scrubbing, and setting up.

The next morning, Gordon (my husband) and I had breakfast with Ron and Mary Ann. Then we went to our office. They reviewed our financial practices with our treasurer and accountant. They met with the staff. They met with me. In the evening, they met with the board. They listened quietly while board members disputed a provision of our by-laws: one member wanted to structure the organization so that our board, which is comprised of 51% people with disabilities, could employ or appoint others to do such work as treasurer or secretary, since those jobs might be too difficult for people with disabilities; others argued that this was contrary to the IL philosophy of empowerment. “It sure was hot in there,” Ron commented to me later. August in Craig is hot, so I wasn’t sure if Ron was referring to our weather or to our board meeting.

The next day we talked some more about what would be necessary for us to do if we got a large federal grant. Ron met with some consumers while Mary Ann finally got a chance to see the town and do a bit of shopping. We all had been working very hard.

Follow-Up Help

Since that time, Ron and his staff have continued to mentor us, advising about grants, helping to design a logo, leaving us copies of their forms, policies, and practices. We consult them often. We value their advice.

Why did it have to be Texans to come to our rescue? We found that Texas is not only a very big state, it also has a very big independent living center, full of people with very big ideas. We found Ron and Mary Ann to be big on qualifications, which make them the best people for the job. Ron and Mary Ann also extended us a big Texas welcome to visit their center as well. One of these days we plan to do that. Something tells me we will come back big on Texas too.

The board and staff of the Independent Life Center extend most sincere thanks to APRIL and to ARCIL for including us in the Peer Mentoring Program. We will benefit for years from it.