Vending machine feeds young minds

RANDOLPH – A new vending machine at Randolph Elementary will feed students’ minds instead of their bellies.

The Randolph TeamMates Mentoring Program received a book vending machine through the TeamMates READ Grant.

The mentoring program aims to improve reading levels of elementary students. Local students will have the opportunity to be rewarded with a token for a book from the vending machine by showing positive character strengths or from other accomplishments.

TeamMates provided 300 books to fill the vending machine and the elementary library will keep it filled as needed.

“Students have been so excited to begin using the vending machine,” said local TeamMates coordinator Amanda Reimers. “So far, each elementary TeamMates mentee have received a token for being part of the program which brought the vending machine to us.”

TeamMates will also be lacing up their sneakers for the organization’s upcoming one-mile walk.

TeamMates will be hosting the walk event at 6 p.m., Friday, Sept. 20, at the Randolph High School track. Mentors, mentees and community members are welcome to join.

A link to register for the walk can be found on the school website and Facebook page. For additional information call or text Reimers at 402-360-0467.

The purpose of the walk is to promote awareness of the need for more Team-Mates mentors as there is a current waiting list of students who would like to be paired with a mentor. Mentors commit to spend one hour per week with their students at school.

TeamMates Mentoring was co-founded by Tom Osborne and his wife, Nancy, in 1991 and since then more than 49,000 matches have been made across the state. The TeamMates mission is to impact the world by inspiring students to reach their full potential through mentoring. Team-Mates currently supports nearly 10,000 matches in a five-state area in Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, South Dakota and Wyoming.

If interested in becoming a Randolph TeamMates Mentor, apply at teammates. org.