Although the weather was rainy and dreary the day of Friday, April 27th, Eastern Bank was full of sunshine and admiration. Friday, April 27, 2018 was Disability Mentorship Day (DMD) at the bank, a Work Without Limits initiative I had been coordinating along with my co-worker Chrissie Stevens. DMD is a large-scale national effort sponsored by the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) for students and job-seekers with disabilities. I am new at the bank and this was my first time coordinating DMD and I did not know what to expect, but I was so pleasantly surprised!
The day began with Chrissie and I greeting our two mentees in the lobby of our Lynn office and introducing ourselves. Chrissie works in Human Resources and I work in the Operations Division. The mentees spent the day shadowing the Operations Division and meeting leading managers in Human Resources. Being the assistant to the Director of Operations, I stayed with the mentees throughout the day to guide them to the multiple departments and introduce them to their mentors. The mentees went through 8 departments, where each mentor explained the functions of their department and their impact on the overall production of the bank. Throughout the day, the mentees were engaged and asked insightful questions. It was impressive to witness the mentees connecting all of our various departments to one another, and taking what they learned from one mentor and applying it to the department they just shadowed.
From breakfast to learning about loans to lunch to International Operations, I saw our mentees as the striving young professionals they truly are, not just individuals with a disability. Throughout the day, we discovered that the three of us had many similar interests. Personally, we shared a love for Italian food and Mary Poppins. Professionally, we bonded over administration and finance.
Although the day was intended to benefit for the mentees by providing education and networking opportunities, I felt like I was the one gaining and learning! Individuals with disabilities are capable of so much more than sometimes society credits them for. I am so thankful to have been educated by this program brought forth by Work Without Limits, but most importantly, our two mentees. Thank you for opening my eyes and all of those within the Operations Division and more at Eastern Bank. It was truly one of the most rewarding days of my professional career.
