{"podcast":{"title":"Open Space Radio","slug":"open-space-radio-225134","podcast_index_feed_id":225134,"rss_url":"https://nrpaopenspace.libsyn.com/rss","website_url":"https://www.nrpa.org/blog/about-open-space-radio-podcast/","image_url":"https://static.libsyn.com/p/assets/6/e/3/a/6e3a0c1316b82e52e55e3c100dce7605/Untitled_design_12.png","author":"National Recreation and Park Association","episode_count":200,"summary":"Open Space Radio is a podcast for park and recreation professionals and outdoor advocates that aims to share inspiring and engaging stories about community, connection, and the impact of local parks and recreation. New episodes are released every other Tuesday. Open Space Radio is the official podcast of the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) — Because everyone deserves a great park.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-21T22:18:36.185967+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/open-space-radio-225134"},"episode":{"title":"Mentoring: A Positive Impact for All — Episode 165","slug":"mentoring-a-positive-impact-for-all-episode-165","published_at":"2025-01-21T11:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/open-space-radio-225134/mentoring-a-positive-impact-for-all-episode-165","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/open-space-radio-225134","url":"https://nrpaopenspace.libsyn.com/mentoring-a-positive-impact-for-all-episode-165","audio_url":"https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/nrpaopenspace/FINISHED_OSR165.mp3?dest-id=540038","summary":"Pictured: Teen Leaders in the HYPE program at City of Mesa Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities participate in an exercise to overcome obstacles. Photo courtesy of Blythe Brown. Did you know that 74 percent of adults who were mentored as youth say their mentor contributed significantly to their success in life? Now, consider that more than 1 in 3 young people in America are growing up without a mentor. Fortunately, park and recreation professionals are addressing this gap by bringing more mentoring opportunities to youth across the country. And, NRPA is supporting these professionals and their agencies in their efforts to build effective and evidence-based mentoring programs that connect youth with caring and compassionate mentors, while strengthening connections across community. On today's episode, in celebration of National Mentoring Month, we chatted with six youth mentees and six of their mentors in Mesa, Arizona; Huntsville, Alabama; and Monroe County, Michigan, to learn more about the impact of these programs. Tune in to the full episode to learn how each program is meeting the unique needs of youth, providing safe spaces filled with opportunities, and helping youth build meaningful connections with their peers and adults. You'll hear from: Chris Daniels, a mentor for City of Huntsville Parks and Recreation Department's Male Mentorship program Carter Williams, a youth participant in City of Huntsville Parks and Recreation Department's Male Mentorship program Blythe Brown, recreation assistant, Oscar Venegas, recreation supervisor, and Raynetta Brown, recreation coordinator for City of Mesa Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities Eilleen Johnson, Adyson Thompson and Rebekkah Evans, teen leaders for City of Mesa's HYPE (Helping Youth Produce Excellence) p…","meta_description":"Pictured: Teen Leaders in the HYPE program at City of Mesa Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities participate in an exercise to overcome obstacles. Ph…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3218,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/open-space-radio-225134/episodes/mentoring-a-positive-impact-for-all-episode-165/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/open-space-radio-225134/mentoring-a-positive-impact-for-all-episode-165.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}