TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — A time of isolation during the pandemic led a young student at Rickards High school to create an organization that will help kids in need through mentorship.
Sruthi Sentil a senior began her BuddyKnit mentorship program in 2021 through seeking out children who needed it most.
With help from a case manager, they were able to connect her with 7 children in foster care. So far, she's recruited 100 mentors within the Big Bend area.
"Honestly a transformative experience and that not only did I get to make these connections during a time of isolation, but I also really saw this need in our community for this peer-to-peer connection," Sentil said.
BuddyKnit has partnered with Bond Elementary, Sabal Palm Elementary, and Fairview Middle school.
Samitha Balireddy is a mentor of BudyKnit. The Rickards High school sophomore talks about the importance of becoming a mentor and what impact it has had in her life.
"This has been honestly really eye-opening for me as well in addition to helping my mentee. It's been really helpful to myself and I've had a lot of fun in generally with it," Balireddy said.
Roosevelt Sea who is an Administrator at Rickards believes this mentorship program will uplift children in the community and other schools should be inspired to do the same.
"With this organization that their doing it will expose the children to something they may have not seen before which they will gravitate them to something greater which I think is an awesome opportunity," Sea said.
Moving forward, Sruthi will be graduating next year, but she plans for Buddyknit to continue to grow for generation to come. She has a panel of offices that will keep the BuddyKnit program afloat by recruiting more mentees in Leon County.
