As a free mentoring program, Woman to Woman Mentoring Program of Frederick County is a community-based organization that seeks to empower women living or working in the area. Opening in 2008, it is the product of a survey conducted by the Frederick County Commission for Women to assess the needs of women, said Katherine Douglass, the newly appointed director of Woman to Woman.

“It’s the only program of this kind, locally,” said mentor Kristi Jacobs-Woods, a 38-year-old real estate agent and marketing director for a life science software company. “[Woman to Woman] is really important because there are a lot of benefits.”

As stated in the website, “Woman to Woman is an intergenerational program that assists Frederick County women ages 18-35 who desire personal and professional guidance to transform their lives through   relationships [….]”

The program lasts during the school year, said Douglass. First the mentors and the mentees apply, and then we match them up during the summer. “The pair works together meeting the goals of the mentee,” said Douglass.

Living up to its motto, “For Young Women of Frederick County Building Success for Life,” Woman to Woman offers emotional, social and communal support to women. “We provide learning opportunities for them,” said Douglass.

Through the mentor-mentee pairs, Woman to Woman helps mentees define and achieve their goals; whether it’s having a stable home life, trying to get finances in track or obtaining either their career or educational goals, said Douglass.

As a new organization, Woman to Woman is remains small. It acquires all of its funding through three basic sources: fundraising, grants and donations, said Douglass. Through the support of the community, Woman to Woman has become a stable fixture in the Frederick.

“It became housed in Frederick Community College in 2008,” said Douglass. “As it grew, the college offered space and a support staff.”

Since its commencement, Woman to Woman have grown to include 21 mentee and mentor pairs, nine more than what it started with two years ago, reported Douglass. “A lot of women have been involved and that’s why the program continues to grow,” said Woods.

Although the program is still in its early stages, it is evident that Woman to Woman is making a positive impact in the community. “We don’t have enough history yet to site statistics, but we can site success stories and we have lots and lots of those,” said Douglass. “We know from our graduates that it’s helped them with making connections and getting jobs. We know a couple of mentees who have gotten jobs that they really wanted [….]”

The same experience can be attributed to mentee, Alex Kelkye. As a State Farm employee and a student, Kelkye desired something more than the traditional route of self-discovery that many mentees seek assistance with. “My situation is a little bit different,” said Kelkye. “I already have my goals and I already know what to do.”

The administration at Woman to Woman assigned Kelkye to be Woods’ mentee. “Our personalities clicked immediately,” said Kelkye. “I can call her, text her, vent, ask her a question or anything. She’s like a friend and I didn’t really expect to get a friend out of this, but that’s what it did.”

Woods, one of the original mentors, has been a part of Woman to Woman for three years. Unfortunately, she did not have a mentor, however, she still experiences the rewards in having a mentor-mentee relationship. “I know that the program is intended for the mentees, but I think that also, as a mentor, you get a lot out of the program,” said Woods.

According to Douglass, the mentor-mentee pairs are required to commit one year to the program, spending five hours a month with each other, talking and working together towards goal achievement. Woman to Woman assist mentors and mentees in fulfilling these qualifications by hosting a variety of events.

“We provide a program every month, some sort of event for them all to spend time together,” said Douglass. Some of the programs that are in the most demand right now is job search assistance, networking and resume building, said Douglass.

As a result of the successful pairing, requirements and events, Kelkye was about to accomplish one her major goals. Basically, Kristie helped me prepare for my interview, and then I got my dream job at a development position, said Kelkye.

In addition, Kelkye was proud to announce her recent submission of her graduation application. “I didn’t want to put college to side because I had a job,” said Kelkye. “She [Kristie] definitely kept me on it and I applied for graduation.”

With her positive experiences in joining Woman to Woman, and the subsequent success, Kelkye has become an advocate for mentoring programs. A lot of young women get lost in the world, trying to discover where their place is and where they want to be, said Kelkye. “A lot of people just need to be lifted up, and they don’t how, and this gives them these opportunities.”

One major factor that influences women’s self-perception and ambitions is the media. “I think it’s something that all women struggle with, especially if you don’t have strong role models in your life,” said Douglass. “If you don’t have real people to look up to, to see what’s possible, you’re kind of stuck with what you see in the media.”

According to a video on allwomenmedia.org, via Love Social + Missrepresentation.org, the average teenage girl consumes 10 hours and 45 minutes of media every day. Forty-four percent of 8-year-old girls want to be leaders. However, after consuming only three minutes of media, three out of four girls experience feelings of shame, remorse and guilt.

“I see girls super shy when they come in--not making eye contact--and now they’re laughing, feeling that they belong there. Literally, it’s like changing someone’s life,” said Kelkye. “A lot of people just need to be lifted up and they don’t how and this gives them this opportunity.”

In being a women-focused mentoring program, Woman to Woman make influential and successful women more visible and accessible in the community. “One of the important things that this program provides is role models,” said Douglass. “This is what it’s really like to go to school and work full time; just real, down to earth examples of women.”

As time progress, Woman to Woman has continually grown as a positive resource for women in the Frederick Community. In regards to the future of Woman to Woman, there was a unanimous objective from Douglass, Woods and Kelkye, to expand awareness about the program. “I think this is a great thing,” said Kelyke. “I think that we need more of this.”

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