Building Lifelong Connections and Transforming Futures Through Mentorship
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By Ryann Swift on October 10, 2025
There was nothing wrong with Izzy Nichols. She was 7 years old, a second grader in Lincoln Public Schools, a good student from a caring and supportive family. She was generally a happy child. However, when her father passed away suddenly, Izzy’s school counselor took notice. Even though everything appeared fine on the surface, the counselor suspected Izzy might need someone to talk to. “When you’re in second grade, you’re oblivious to a lot of the heavy things going on,” says Izzy. “You sort of know what’s happening, but you’re confused. My counselor saw that my mom was dealing with the loss of her husband while trying to care for me and my siblings. The counselor thought I could use a bit of consistency, somebody positive who could help guide me through the things I was experiencing.”
Fortunately for Izzy and her family, there was TeamMates. TeamMates Mentoring is a nonprofit organization founded by Dr. Tom and Nancy Osborne in 1991 that positively impacts the world by inspiring students to reach their full potential through mentoring. TeamMates is the largest school-based mentoring program in the nation that has served more than 51,000 students since its inception and proudly serves 10,000 students in 186 chapters across Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, South Dakota, Missouri, and Wyoming. These mentors, community volunteers from all walks of life, are there not to replace a parent or “fix” a child; they are there to offer support, guidance, and to listen. In other words, the mentor is there simply to be present.
And Izzy’s mentor was none other than Nancy Osborne, herself.
“Nancy and I would just meet in the library every Wednesday during lunch. We’d play games and talk. She was very positive with a high amount of energy. Being able to connect on that energy level and talk about anything and everything. Sometimes we’d have a Scrabble game out and wouldn’t even get to it. We’d just talk and catch up. It was the highlight of my day.”
Izzy Nichols, teammates mentee
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Today, TeamMates proudly serves 10,000 students across six states. But there are more than 500 students just like Izzy who are on a waiting list, desperately in need of a mentor. “What can we do to get one step closer to pairing another child on the waiting list with a mentor?” says Ashton Honnor, Marketing & Communications Manager with TeamMates. “30 to 45 minutes a week is all it takes to make sure students have another caring, trusting adult in their lives.” And as many of the TeamMates volunteers can attest: The experience is often just as rewarding for the mentor as it is for the mentee.
Making a difference through mentorship “I saw my mentor as my idol and my best friend,” says Izzy. “I didn’t know she was Nancy Osborne and what that meant.” In many ways, Izzy had the ideal TeamMates mentor because her mentor was the visionary who came up with the idea in the first place.
In 1991, Nancy was watching a news program featuring a story about investor Eugene Lang, who talked about the importance of mentorship. Inspired to bring that support to the youth of her community in Lincoln, Nancy presented the idea to Tom, who was then the head football coach at the University of Nebraska. Coach Osborne took the notion to his locker room where he asked his players if they’d be willing to mentor seventh- and eighth-grade boys in the Lincoln Public School system. Twenty-two hands went up. Of those original 22 mentees, 21 went on to graduate from high school, and 18 of them continued to some sort of post-secondary education. That initial success drove the Osborne’s to quickly expand their vision throughout Lincoln and further out into the state and the Midwest, bringing TeamMates to more students in need.
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The program’s success is measurable and undeniable. For instance:
61% of TeamMates mentees showed an improvement in grades
“Looking back, I knew we were making a difference based on what the teachers and counselors were saying,” says DeMoine Adams, TeamMates CEO, former Husker football player who went on to play professionally, and mentor. “But it’s a little more powerful when you see it on paper. Better attendance and grades, fewer disciplinary referrals. The data makes it more real — we’re really doing something that is helping our youth.”
Of course, behind every one of those statistics are dozens of individual stories — real lives impacted by mentors who took the time to show up and listen. Mentors who took the trouble to care. One of those stories belongs to Eddie Brown.
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As a child, Eddie was an honor roll student, son of a college-graduate mother who had inspired him to want to get his degree. But Eddie was getting in trouble at school, fighting, defending himself against racial slurs from his predominantly white classmates. Despite having that strong family background, Eddie just needed a little extra guidance. TeamMates was there to help by pairing him with a Nebraska football player.
“Ultimately that’s what mentoring does for kids of all colors,” says Eddie. “I want to go to college. I’m looking at a mentor who is in college, who looks like me. So, that was powerful. As kids of color, we have the tendency to not dream for certain things in life because we don’t see people in those positions who look like us.”
Eddie went on to live his dream of going to college, attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and getting a degree in business. After working in retail management, banking sales, HR recruitment, and owning several businesses, Eddie is now a musician in a band he also manages. He is also a TeamMates mentor.
Many former mentees, like Eddie, grow up to become mentors. TeamMates representatives call this The Ripple Effect: Helping children grow into the leaders of tomorrow so they can help the next generation grow and so on. While these mentees turned leaders might come back to TeamMates to give back to the organization and to pay it forward in their own communities, many of them stay because of something they never realized as mentees. They discover how much the relationship and the experience means to the mentor.
“Over 90% of our mentors leave their mentoring time feeling more engaged and 86% feel more hopeful,” says Adams. “They know they are paying it forward and making a difference. The mentor feels like they are doing something good. And that they are part of something bigger than themselves. They’re finding a sense of purpose outside of their work and outside of their own family. It brings another layer of joy to their life.”
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“A mentor is not a parent or tutor or even a peer. You are not there to judge or impose values. You are there to be a good listener. You let the young person move freely in the conversation and
let them be themselves.”
Jim Bennett, coordinator of the Lincoln TeamMates chapter
Though both parties might be reluctant and uncertain at first, a comfort level and mutual respect gradually builds. Then a relationship and trust. And for many lucky mentors, that often leads to a friendship that lasts a lifetime.
“The two things we hear most often from mentors,” says Bennett, “is that it’s the best hour of their week and that they’re getting more out of it than the mentee is.”
“It’s love,” says Walker. “It’s medicine for your heart.”
sponsored by: tEAMMATES MENTORING
“A mentor is not a parent or tutor or even a peer. You are not there to judge or impose values. You are there to be a good listener. You let the young person move freely in the conversation and let them be themselves.”
Jim Bennett, coordinator of the Lincoln TeamMates chapter
Izzy kept seeing Nancy regularly throughout her elementary, middle school, and high school years. Their relationship evolved, and Izzy began to see Nancy as an inspiration to get serious about her future, overcome any challenge, and pursue her dreams. Together, they got Izzy ready for college at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. And to this day, they remain close friends.
“I’m inspired by her leadership, her confidence,” says Izzy. “On my down days, she’d still show up with positive energy, and I wanted to bring that same energy. She impacted me as a mentee, a friend, and a family member. I often ask myself ‘What would Nancy do?’ It’s ingrained in me to
this day.”
“The breakdown of the American family is a core issue, and every part of America is in trouble with this problem,” says Denny Walker, businessman, entrepreneur, and emeritus member of the TeamMates board of directors. Walker met Osborne in 1997 and helped expand the organization into Omaha. Walker also volunteered to be a mentor himself. “I know how important mentors are,” says Walker. “Coach Osborne was one of mine.”
Classroom performance
71% of TeamMates mentees had fewer unexcused absences
ATTENDANCE
87% of TeamMates mentees had fewer disciplinary referrals
Improved behavior
81% of TeamMates mentees reported they are engaged
in their schools and/or communities
Community engagement
The emotional return comes on a relatively small investment of time and effort. TeamMates will match a mentor with a student of similar interests and backgrounds. Because the program is school-based, all sessions happen during the school year and during the school day, in the security of the school during class hours. But the actual day and time of the weekly meeting (each meeting is 30 to 60 minutes) is flexible to the mentor’s schedule.
Being a TeamMates mentor also requires very little work. Once a volunteer passes a background check and reference checks, goes through a detailed training session, and is paired with a student, they are free to conduct the meetings as they wish. There is no curriculum. They play games, read books, build Legos, work on crafts, go for a walk on campus, or just talk.
TeamMates is always searching for new mentors — more than 500 students are waiting for that steadying, inspiring presence. If you or someone you know is interested in becoming a mentor or donating to the program head over to www.teammates.org.
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