Creating Meaningful Mentor-Mentee Relationships and DIDN’T YOU USE TO BE QUEENIE B? By Terri-Lynne DeFino
- Marisa Gelfand
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
Regina runs a soup kitchen in New Haven. She cooks, cleans, orders supplies, and serves meals—often with the quiet support of volunteers. She’s tough and reliable.
It’s a far cry from who she used to be: Queenie B, a wild, brilliant chef who lived fast, won big, and crashed hard. Her chaos burned through Regina’s career, her marriage, and her role as a mother.
Now, the soup kitchen is more than a job. It’s Regina’s way of making amends.
Enter Gale, a line cook sidelined by an injury. He shows up at the soup kitchen and starts lending a hand. Regina quickly recognizes his raw talent, and a long-dormant love for cooking and teaching sparks inside her. She becomes his mentor.
Their bond is built on trust, grit, and respect. As Regina shapes Gale’s skills into something world-class, he offers her something just as vital: hope that Queenie B’s talent and fire can live alongside Regina’s sobriety and hard-won peace.
Both Gale and Regina gain deeply from their mentor-mentee relationship.
Mentorship happens when a seasoned professional offers guidance, encouragement, and emotional support to someone newer in the field. It can involve role modeling, goal setting, and career development. These relationships can be formal or informal, and they center around the needs and growth of the mentee. On paper, the mentee is the primary beneficiary. But in practice, both sides often walk away transformed.
Here are tools for a creating meaningful mentor-mentee relationship.
Collaborate on Goals: Start with clarity. The mentee should articulate what they hope to gain, and the mentor should be clear about the support and guidance they can offer.
Be Flexible: Stay open to new ideas, perspectives, and approaches. If things need to shift, communicate honestly and offer specific feedback about what’s working and what’s not.
Build Trust: Listen actively to each other’s needs, concerns, and growth areas. A strong mentoring relationship is rooted in connection, clarity, compassion, and commitment.
Appreciate the Process: Mentorship evolves. Over time, roles shift. One day, the student might become the teacher. Throughout this journey, regularly express gratitude.
