A few weeks ago, I received a phone call at work with a message that said my mentor from Loma Linda University Physical Therapy School and his wife were going to be coming into town, and they wanted to know if I had time to visit. It had been a long time since I had seen them, and I was excited to think that I would get to visit with the people who had meant so much to me at such an instrumental time of my life.

So this past week I spent the day with them, and I was reminded of how important it is to be in relationship with people who love and care about you. I was only 20 years old when I met them, and at the time I had moved 3,000 miles across the country from Maryland to California to go to physical therapy school. I missed my family and friends, and I was not so sure my decision to go to professional school was the right one. And then finally I met him, a professor I could relate to.

He got me thinking and believing and asking questions, and none of our questioning was too much for him. He brought all the theory and the practice together in my mind at last. I remember feeling like I got it and I knew it. He always went the extra mile with all his students, and there were 62 of us. He made everyone think they were special, and he had a knack for listening to you.

When I got my first physical therapy job, it was working for him at his newly-opened office. I worked with him for a year. He taught me so many things, like how to listen for the answers, how to do hands-on skills to heal, and he gave me a skill set I now get to hand down to the next generation of physical therapists at my office. It was because of him and him believing in me that I am the physical therapist I am today.

I can't tell you what it meant to me to see him and his wife this last week. I could talk to them nonstop for hours. When I see them it is like I am 20 years old again. They still believe in me and want the best for me. They are proud of me, and they have cheered me on in my profession for many years. Thank goodness for mentors and people like them, who care enough to go the extra mile to make other people's life better. I will forever be grateful to them and for their love, time and energy on my behalf.

Thank you to all of you out there who mentor others everyday, you are making a significant difference in the long-term lives of others, and it is through this giving of your gifts that the next set of professionals can succeed and care for future generations.

Sheree DiBiase, PT, is the owner of Lake City Physical Therapy. She and her staff can be reached in their Coeur d'Alene office at (208) 667-1988 and in their Spokane Valley office at (509) 891-2623.