The SMILES (Southcoast Mentoring Initiative for Learning, Education and Service) Program of Fall River and New Bedford held its sixth fundraiser with a 3.6 mile walk/run/cycle/skate around the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth Ring Road on March 23, 2014. Hundreds of Individuals and teams collected pledges for the event. SMILES, established in 2003, works by matching volunteer mentors to students in the New Bedford and Fall River public schools. Mentors meet with their young friends for an hour a week at the students’ school. The goal is to increase the students’ chance of graduating high school and to deter them from drugs, alcohol, violence and gang involvement. Click here for an eleven-minute video of the event. Click here for photos of the 2012 event. Click here to see photos of SMILES mentors in action. Anyone interested in mentoring a child can contact SMILES Coordinator Aaron Hubley at 508-679-5233.

(Top row) Some of the many full-size body drawings of the many mentees are displayed around the gymnasium at the UMass-Dartmouth Athletic Center. (Row two, left) People Incorporated Chief Operating Officer Bill Perkins welcomes the crowd of supporters and thanks the many donor organizations, including BayCoast Bank. (Row two, right) Mentor Holly Bronhard talks about the many benefits of being a SMILES mentor. (Row three, left) SMILES  Group Leader Julie Cardinali welcomes members of her family to the event. (Row three, center and right) Edgar and Jennifer Lazaro get warmed up for the walk with instructions from Gina Lafrance. (Bottom two rows) Walkers follow the lead of youth from the Boys and Girls Club as they head twice around the UMass-Dartmouth Ring Road either walking, running, cycling or scootering.