Building tomorrow’s community leaders
“Leadership is not a title. It’s an activity,” says Reynaldo Mesa, executive director of Real Men, Real Leaders (RMRL). Started in 2009, the nonprofit organization in Garden City, Kansas, began as a leadership development program for at-risk youth. They now foster enrichment and real-world skills education for over 75 active participants from varying ethnic, religious, and cultural backgrounds
The nonprofit’s mission is to help young men become leaders through a structured curriculum focused on four tenets: leadership, organization, communication, and personal management skills. They embrace the Kansas Leadership Center’s definition of a leader. Through classes and activities, they’ve reached over 200 boys and families, some of which are now alumni assistants to the program. Utilizing Bonterra’s Jumpstart program and Fundraising and Engagement software, the RMRL team is growing quickly, with a waitlist for participants and a roster of engaged donors.
From boys to men in rural Kansas
According to the National Institute of Health, age 10 is a particularly formative time for kids as they become independent and more peer oriented. In the digital age, however, much of this influence and social interaction comes online, with a reported 40% of children aged 8-12 using social media and 95% of American teens possessing iPhones. Mental illness is rising among adolescents, but time spent in nature and community from an early age can help combat symptoms.
Garden City is a diverse community, with a considerable immigrant population. Many are employed in agriculture, the county’s chief industry. Language barriers can inhibit first-generation American and immigrant children in educational and professional opportunities.
Armed with this knowledge, founders Reynaldo Mesa, Dennis Mesa, and Tim Cruz — all former local Garden City mayors — saw an opportunity to bring together prominent community leaders to guide Garden City’s youth to professional and personal success by serving as positive role models. “We know if we can get them out into the real world, doing things like hunting and fishing, engaging with others, they’ll learn skills and thrive early on,” says Reynaldo.
The RMRL team is comprised of only six staff and 10 board members, most of whom have careers and jobs outside of the organization as educators, realtors, business owners, and public servants. They create the curriculum, hire consultants, engage donors and volunteers, and oversee the program’s success as a close-knit band of organizers. Until recently, they did it without outside help. But finding a partner in fundraising efforts changed the game and put them on the path to creating even more community impact and a better future for Garden City boys.
Holistic skill-building for young minds
RMRL offers 5th and 6th grade boys skill-building courses that improve confidence, consideration of others, communication, accountability, and decision-making. Students are taught basic life skills, while bonding with peers and getting to know community leaders from time to time.
External consultants and corporate trainers are brought in by the RMRL team to enhance leadership programming:
- Community service and volunteering
- Leadership program
- Etiquette and manners training
- Outdoor leadership program
- College and career preparation
- Behavior tracking and accountability
Participants must be consistent with their schoolwork and attendance, engage in civic responsibility, volunteer in the community, and learn how to be courteous to others. One required activity is to take their mothers out to dinner; some students are even selected to travel to Topeka to meet the Governor and their state representatives.
“We just want to give them the knowledge and opportunity to see everything,” says Jonas Cruz. “We take them to visit colleges, take them to the Capitol. They get dressed up in suits.”
Jumpstarting their impact with technology
RMRL’s small team of six is resourceful, but needed help reaching donors, corporate consultants, and participants. They learned about Bonterra and Jumpstart through another local nonprofit, the Western Kansas Community Foundation. As a realtor, Reynaldo knows the value of consistent networking and outreach for long-term success, so he made the call to Bonterra to sign up in 2017.
Reynaldo says the team saw improvements to their operations right way, helping them run impactful fundraising campaigns, consolidate donor information in one centralized platform, and send highly effective and personalized thank-you videos from boys in the program.
Expanding youth leadership
Since its inception, RMRL has gained over 200 graduates of the program, many of them grown men thriving in the community. Some are inspired to serve as mentors or consultants in the program themselves. There are currently 75 enrollees and a long waitlist for programs. Reynaldo and Jonas say their next goal is to be able to reach and serve all those on the waiting list and to one day open a leadership academy for boys and girls.
When asked what his advice is for other nonprofit leaders, Reynaldo cites words of wisdom he often imparts to the young men: “You have to be bold and embrace the challenge and not run from it. And sometimes that can be unpleasant. But you can’t worry about that. You just need to stay at it. Don’t give up. If you have passion for what you do, others will see your passion and your mission will grow. It’ll grow itself.”
