Written by Samantha Stetzer, Winona Daily News, January 1, 2018
Homework and a game of Uno have become a common part of Bob Deter’s Tuesday afternoons.
It’s not the big, travel-filled afternoons the financial executive for a global company has always done, but it’s certainly his way of paying the good fortune life has awarded him back, Deter said. So when he retired six years ago and was looking for a way to volunteer, he found his way to Miller Mentoring.
“He just wanted to help,” said the program’s director Cindy Amberg.
Miller Mentoring is an after school program that pairs adult volunteers and middle through high school-aged students together. As the Winona Volunteer of the Month for January, Miller Mentoring and its volunteers have spent 17 years assisting students in their academic pursuits while simultaneously providing extra emotional support and expanding social skills by pairing students with an advocate and partner.
But during their last five years together, Deter and his student, Joey, have gone past the basics of the program’s intentions.