POSTED: 12:02 am EST January 20, 2010

WASHINGTON — Citing his own story growing up without an engaged father, President Barack Obama on Wednesday announced a year long mentoring program that his aides will lead for young men in the capital.

The president and first lady Michelle Obama welcomed the first class of mentors and proteges to the grand East Room to kick off the program and National Mentoring Month. Obama urged them to take advantage of their potential and the access to senior White House officials.

“It doesn’t take much to make a big difference,” Obama said.

The effort will plan programs for the boys, including monthly workshops to encourage them in education, career planning and community service. It is similar to one Mrs. Obama started in the fall for young women, pairing about 16 girls from the Washington area with women at top levels in the Obama administration.

“This is one of those that I can’t take full credit for,” the president said on the one-year anniversary of taking office.

Mrs. Obama smiled and told the students to use the opportunity to ask questions of their mentors and learn from the experience.

“They are here because they believe in your potential and they want to share some of the lessons that they’ve learned along the way, because even though they might look a little old, remember that these men were standing in your shoes not too long ago,” Mrs. Obama said.

Pointing to her husband, she said that their family is a product of hard work and pulling themselves up. The president agreed.

“I was raised by a single mom who struggled at times to provide for me and my sister. And while I was lucky to have loving grandparents who poured everything they had into helping my mother take care of us, I still felt the weight of my father’s absence throughout my childhood,” said Obama, who has written about his early life in a best-selling memoir.

“So I wasn’t always focused in school the way I should have been. I did some things I’m not proud of. I got in more trouble than I should have. Without a bunch of second chances and a whole lot of luck, my life could have taken easily a turn for the worse,” the president said.

Mrs. Obama started the girls’ mentoring program in November. Just last week, the girls and their mentors packed bags of food for children who don’t get enough to eat on the weekends. The girls also attended a career skills workshop where they learned about personal development, networking, etiquette and other topics.

Many of the girls also have spent one-on-one time with the first lady and attended local events with her.

The first lady said last week that the mentoring program is designed to help young people develop the “intangible confidence that really can push kids from mediocrity to fabulousness.”

“We’re excited to see how these kids respond, and what it does for their futures, if anything, and how these relationships grow over time,” she said, adding that she plans more travel this year to encourage the development of mentoring programs around the country.

In his remarks Wednesday, the president emphasized the need for mentors around the country and highlighted mentoring efforts by companies, nonprofit groups and governments.

“What we need now is committed adults to come forward,” the president said.

Among the White House officials who will mentor boys: Michael Strautmanis, chief of staff for the Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs; Bill Burton, deputy press secretary; Emmett Beliveau, director of advance; and speechwriter Adam Frankel. Among those mentoring girls: Domestic Policy Director Melody Barnes; Tina Tchen, director of the Office of Public Engagement; Cecilia Munoz, director of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs; and Susan Sher, chief of staff for Mrs. Obama.

Source URL:  http://www.wptz.com/politics/22279478/detail.html

Tags: First Lady Michelle Obama, Male Mentors, National Mentoring Month 2010, President Obama