The touching tale of a mentor and mentee taking on the Glasgow Kiltwalk to celebrate the end of their mentoring journey.
After an incredible four years of mentoring, our dedicated mentor Fraser McLean and his young person Keira marked the end of their extraordinary mentoring journey in an equally extraordinary way – by taking part in the Glasgow Kiltwalk, and raising a staggering £1,195 in support of MCR Pathways.
When asked what first inspired Fraser to become an MCR Pathways mentor, he said, “I was aware of attainment gaps between different areas in Glasgow, and when I read more into it I was shocked at how disadvantaged young people can be purely by the location or circumstances around their early life.”
“MCR Pathways provided a practical solution to this and I decided to see if I was suitable, based on my own life experiences, to potentially support a young person in my own community.”
Fraser decided to see if his own life experiences could help to support a young person in his area, and this decision is what led to his four year long mentoring journey with Keira.
Throughout the course of their mentoring relationship, Fraser has seen tremendous growth in Keira in the time they’ve spent together. “When we first met, Keira didn’t know what sort of career she wanted,” Fraser said.
“She settled on Primary School teaching because she wished to give support to children similar to how she remembers people playing a pivotal role in her early life. That is to her absolute credit and I don’t think I can express better how mature, emphatic and kind that sort of decision making process is, which sums Keira up!”
However, Keira is not the only one who has grown and benefitted from the pair’s mentoring relationship. “I have learned a lot about myself and my own experiences through mentoring,” Fraser said. “How lucky I perhaps was and an understanding of how many mentors in my life helped guide me to where I am today.”
“Also, the feeling of giving your time and seeing how over a few years this can have such a positive effect on someone with so much potential is very humbling and rewarding in equal measure.”
Upon realising that their four-year-long relationship would be coming to an end, the pair decided that taking part in the Kiltwalk would be the perfect way to bookend a monumental time in both of their lives.
On what led to the decision, Fraser said: “We spoke about how fortunate we are that a programme like MCR Pathways exists, and we thought it would be a nice way to close this chapter by showing our appreciation.”
Importantly, it was Keira who stressed that she wanted to raise funds for MCR Pathways “to try and ensure more young people in the future gain the same support and experience.”
Looking to the future, Keira is currently finishing up her exams before moving on to University to study primary school teaching – and Fraser aims to be with her every step of the way. “I would love to keep in contact and be a small part of many of the milestones still to come for Keira,” he says.
On what’s next for Fraser – he plans to continue mentoring and where possible, fundraising for MCR Pathways. “I do plan to continue mentoring,” he says, “I fundamentally believe that young people should always be able to achieve their full potential based on their talent and not the circumstances.”
“Any security around programmes like MCR is vital to continue to bridge attainment gaps and ensure young people are supported in a way to achieve what they desire in life and ultimately give back to a caring society.”
When asked what he would say to anyone considering becoming an MCR Pathways mentor, Fraser said: “If you’re thinking about it then you’re already perfect for it. The fact you are thinking about it shows you care enough already to be a fantastic mentor for a young person who is looking for one.”
“The MCR team are incredibly supportive. I was amazed at how well the system works pairing you up with a young person. I’m a great believer in “what’s for you won’t go by you”, so my advice would be to sign up and start the journey. You’ll look back in a few years and think how positive an experience that decision has opened up.”
There are thousands of young people across Glasgow and the wider UK who are looking for someone like you to support and guide them.
If you feel inspired by Fraser and Keira’s story, you can find out more information about becoming a mentor by visiting: mcrpathways.org/become-a-mentor.
If you would like to get involved in the Kiltwalk challenge, MCR Pathways still has free spaces available in Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh. You can find more information or sign up to take part by visiting: https://mcrpathways.org/kiltwalk/
