Montco Juvenile Court-related mentor program is paying off

Erving Hurst looked at the giant chess pieces in front of him at the Spruce Street Harbor Park in Philadelphia and waited. His opponent, Steve Hahn, made his move.

"My queen just took your queen," Hahn said.

Hurst didn't hesitate. He moved one of his pawns to the last row of Hahn's half of the makeshift board so he could put his queen back in the game.

"Now you're just being mean," said Hahn, 34, of Glenside.

Hurst just smiled. Why not? A few minutes later, he won the match.

The Abington 16-year-old has been making other good moves lately. The best may be participating in Back on Track, a partnership between the Montgomery County Public Defender's Office and Big Brothers Big Sisters Southeastern Pennsylvania that matches young people involved in Juvenile Court with mentors.

The nonprofit says it is the only program in the country that it operates with a public defender.

"My office practices what we call a holistic approach to representation," said Keir Bradford-Grey, the Montgomery County chief public defender.

Her staff was encountering many children who broke the law but didn't have a lengthy court record. Such young people, she said, have a greater chance of being diverted from illegal conduct.

"Some of the kids we were representing really just needed a consistent mentor and someone they could talk to," Bradford-Grey said.

In January 2013, she started talking with Big Brothers Big Sisters about whether it would provide the mentors if the Public Defender's Office provided the youngsters. The idea required the local Big Brother Big Sister organization to return to an earlier model of how it made matches between adults and children.

The Southeastern Pennsylvania group's efforts began nearly 100 years ago as a courtroom intervention for fatherless boys who needed a positive role model, said Yvonne McPeak, vice president of programs for its Southeastern Pennsylvania office.

The mentoring evolved into a prevention tool for children 12 and younger in vulnerable circumstances to keep them from entering the legal system.

That model changed again for the Montgomery County program, which is funded by District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman's office and the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. The top age a youngster can be to get a mentor was raised from 12 to 17, and participants once again are identified after they have broken the law.

Then, the focus is on looking at all aspects of the child's life.

"We look beyond the criminal events to see the underlying issues that are driving the behavior. We don't just put a Band-Aid on the legal issues," Bradford-Grey said.

Last year, Hurst was 15 and living with his mother - his father had never been in the picture - when he got into an argument with a boy on a school bus. The boy, Hurst said, was bad-mouthing one of his friends.

"He comes at me with fighting words that got me angry," Hurst said.

The situation escalated until Hurst hit the boy and was charged with assault. Back then, Hurst had trouble keeping himself from getting into fights with peers if he felt provoked.

During the court proceedings, Hurst said, Judge Wendy Demchick-Alloy suggested he go into the Back on Track program. He quickly was paired with Hahn, an information technology consultant who joined the program after a friend urged him to become a mentor.

Their first activity was in February, when they went to a Vietnamese restaurant. That gave Hurst a taste of the new experiences he would have with his Big Brother. Since then, their outings have included deep-sea fishing, attending 76ers games, and visiting the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Wherever they go, they talk.

Hurst described one conversation this month in which he asked Hahn for advice on how to approach a girl he had just met whom he liked. Hahn told his Little Brother to "keep it simple. Just say, 'I like you.' "

As Hahn gave the advice, Hurst typed a text message to the girl saying he "had feelings for her." He didn't divulge specifics of her response.

Romance isn't the only topic.

"We talk about how I've been doing in school and my job and where he can help me, say, like I got in an argument and he helped me out of it," Hurst said. "He told me to walk away. Since he's been telling me stuff like that, I've been doing it. He's had a big impact in my life."

His mother, Rhonda Hurst, agreed Hahn had been a positive influence on her son.

Bradford-Grey said the Back on Track program so far has matched 10 young people with mentors. They are tracking the relationships and operational parts of the program to see whether it is effective and whether tweaks are needed.

"The kids who have participated have not re-offended," she said.

Bradford-Grey said she would like to see more young people in the program but needs more adults to volunteer as mentors.

The experience has been rewarding for Hahn.

"It's taught me a little bit about younger people in general," he said. "I've learned to be patient."

Hurst, who said he will be a junior this year in the Eastern Center for Arts and Technology automotive program, is determined not to get in trouble again. He also wants his friendship with Hahn to continue.

"I think me and Steve are going to know each other for a long time," Hurst said.

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