The Mentoring Project

Changing Lives Across The Globe

Our Journey: Every great vision tells an amazing story about its formative days. As time rolls on, the vision gets clearer and clearer. Definition and nuance take shape. Pivots happen. We are all addicted to stories. “When the body goes to sleep the mind stays up all night telling itself stories” – Jonathan Gottschall.

So here is our story…

We Launched a Public Charity in 2022

The Mentoring Project is a 501C3 organization for two primary purposes. First, we are for gospel philanthropy with a unique passion to give a hand up and not just a hand out. Second, it exists to catalyze a mentoring moment for the next generation.

We Established a Board

We have hosted multiple annual and bi-annual board meetings since its inception. We have completed the IRS 1023 process. We have used the legal services of Sally Wagenmaker.

We Published a Book

Tatonka Press co-authored a book entitled God, Relationships and Money written by John and Ludie Nugier.

We Built a Great Website

Josh Starr at Solid Giant created the website www.thementoringproject.com. This website serves as a single world-class repository on biblical life skills mentoring.

Our Vision:

To provide biblical life skill Field Guides for mentoring so that diverse generations can experience an adventurous life with God. To help others miss common life skill mistakes.

We Pivoted

Before a vision can come to fruition, a lot of pivots have to come into existence. In Fall 2022, we pivoted from philanthropy being our top priority to a much bolder and defined vision – The Mentoring Project.com.

“There’s a fine line between heroic persistence and foolish stubbornness. Sometimes the best kind of grit is gritting our teeth and turning around” – Adam Grant

We Choose Mentoring As Our Mission:

At The Mentoring Project, we believe the missing jewel in the church is intentional cross-generational mentoring. It is our mission to put mentoring back “on the map” and on the hearts of gospel leaders and Christians. This is both the pattern, practice, and passion of our Founders John and Ludie Nugier. As the Promise Keepers movement catalyzed the men’s movement for the local church, we desire to catalyze a mentoring movement and a zeal for the next generation.

We Define Mentoring:

What do we mean by mentoring? To intentionally equip and mentor (all life skills) every age group (0-80 years of age) about God, Relationships, Life, and Money. A more robust answer describes a relationship in which someone older imparts all-of-life wisdom to someone younger. Christian Mentoring could be termed “all-of-life discipleship,” the attempt to be faithful disciples of Christ, taking every aspect of life and bringing it under his Lordship.

Our Axiomatic Paradigm:

• Teens: Learning about Jesus, character, and authority
• 20’s: Learning to lead yourself
• 30’s: Learning to lead others
• 40’s: Learning to lead organizations
• 50’s: Learning to lead leaders
• 60’s: Learning to lead movements
• 70’s: Learning to lead sages

We Are Launching a Digital Repository Website

Think of an infinite amount of articles to equip both the mentee and mentor in the craft of mentoring one-another. This digital house (repository) will contain life skills, ideas, Bible verses, information, doctrine, and wisdom to equip and build healthy mentoring relationships.

“Iron sharpens iron, so one man or woman sharpens another.” – Proverbs 27:17

Our Team:

• Dan Dumas: Project Lead and Executive Director
• Matt Damico: General Editor and Author
• Josh Starr: Website Design w/Solid Giant
• Benjamin Aho: Graphic Designer
• Daniel Puerto: Spanish Translation
• Mariano Friginal: Videographer
• The Mentor Project Logo: Claire Mahrefat with Pixel Painters
• Sally Wagenmaker: Lawyer with Wagenmaker and Oberly LLC

Our Strategy:

When we take up the task of mentoring, it helps to know some things about the person we’re mentoring. One useful piece of data is their generational background. The following is a list of generations:

• Elders / Traditionalist: 1928 – 1945
• Boomers: 1946 – 1964
• Generation X: 1965 – 1980
• Millennials / Generation Y: 1981 – 1996
• Generation Z / Generation I: 1997 – 2010
• Generation Alpha: 2011 to present

Our strategy includes creating anchor generational articles to address historical experiences, values, and observations for each generation. These articles are now hosted on our website: https://thementoringproject.com/generations/.

Field Guides:

We never outgrow our need to grow. https://thementoringproject.com/field-guides/.

Our Vision and plan is to write 100+ Field Guides or one million words on specific life skill issues that many people get wrong. Just as a point of interest the Bible contains 800,000 words. These gospel-centered life- skills books are our bread and butter at TMP. We presently have completed 35 Field Guides and are marching toward completion in 2025.

In the future we also recognize that there are an infinite amount of prescriptive articles to access and be written. These 7,000 to 10,000 word Field Guides are to serve the mentoring process by demonstrating what each generation must engage in to have the necessary life skills to flourish. Ever learning, growing and mentoring the next generation is every believer’s calling —Colossians 1:28-29. At The Mentoring Project we strongly believe mentoring is our biblical responsibility and followers of Jesus should be deeply concerned with those coming behind us in need of a mentor. This expectation is what keeps us up at night and why we have launched this ministry.

An Old Testament Text:

“I will utter the sayings of old things that we have heard and known, that our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and wonders that he has done. – Psalm 78:3-4

A New Testament Text:

“The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” –2 Timothy 2:2

After these descriptive articles are completed there will be an infinite and perpetual amount of articles written and cannibalized from other great sources to aid in the mentoring process. In addition to the Digital Repository we foresee hosting a National Conference in the not so distant future. Our prayer and desire is to see every generation engaged in mentoring! We strongly believe there is safety in having multiple mentors throughout your time on this planet.

Our Proposition:

We have invested close to $500,000 since 2022. We are seeking another $500,000 over the next two years to complete this global legacy project in 2026. The next generation must learn to ask good questions, thirst to grow, maintain constant feedback loops, disdain mediocrity, regularly look into the mirror, play offense not defense, never go alone, order their days, build for the long game, set goals, gain clarity, read a lot, get a mentor or two, walk in humility and prize gospel character above all else.

“He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.” –Proverbs 13:20