HOOD Mentoree Spotlight

It is our pleasure and honor to recognize our first HOOD Mentoree Spotlight - Levi Gaskins

Over the past four years I have had the opportunity to get to know this young man very well.  Over that course of time, I have witnessed the continued positive development of an already mature young man.

To give this Mentoree Spotlight the attention he deserves, we should start at the beginning.  He was born September 2^nd, 2000 in Cincinnati, Ohio.  By the time he was 3 months old he had been removed from his biological family and placed in foster care where he remained for approximately 20 months.  From there he was placed with a paternal aunt, Elaine Herron, who became his legal guardian and who has raised him as her own.

As he has developed and matured, Levi has had to deal with much adversity.  Some may ask why this is important as we all deal with some type of adversity.

And while most children will deal with adversity in one form or another, Levi’s case is different, I think, because of his response to it.

Two examples of the adversity Levi faced are:

Feelings of abandonment and being unwanted:  Levi learned early on that his maternal family did not want him because he was biracial.   And while his white sibling also went to foster care, his sibling spent less time there because he was accepted by the maternal family.  No one from Levi’s maternal side reached out to him until he was in his teen years.  And they did so only after reading a positive post on Facebook.

Death:  Early in his sophomore year, at age 15, Levi was confronted with the news that his father, Maurice Mundy, had died.  A victim of a violent crime.

Of course, there are other examples, but the point is, Levi not only overcame these challenges he excelled.  Levi has told me that he was able to overcome negative events partly due to his positive formal and informal support system.

I would be remiss not to mention the positive influences in his life and development.   In the beginning of his life, his foster parents, Chuck and Julie Beidelschies were the ones responsible for loving and nurturing him, both as an infant and a toddler.  Not only did that start him off well, they remained a constant and positive influence in his life, even today.  Levi’s paternal aunt, “Aunt Elaine”, joined the team and kept that love and positive influence going.  His older cousin, Dr. Jeffrey Herron, was raised as his big brother.  Also joining “Team Levi” were other adult role models.  These include Keith Slaughter from Big Brother Big Sisters of America who started with Levi in the 3^rd grade.  Levi also gives credit to community Role models Chester Rose and Coach Teddy Taylor who were constant, positive influences.  Involvement in organizations such as Black Achievers (6 years), and The Home of Opportunities and Dreams, The Hood, (4 years) continued to round out his positive structure.  Within The Hood’s organization Levi served as an officer of the school’s mentoring program for 2 years and has volunteered between 450 and 500 community service hours. He also was involved with STAND for four years.

Finally, Levi was his Senior Class 2018 Vice President, graduating with distinction. He is also a Woodford R. Porter Scholarship Recipient, given only to those African-American students who demonstrate strong leadership and extracurricular involvement, while also meeting strict academic requirements.  As a result, Levi is now attending the University of Louisville.

Please join me in SALUTING LEVI GASKINS AS THE HOOD’S FIRST MENTOREE SPOTLIGHT!