HASTINGS, Neb. -- A mentoring program is changing high school kids' lives in Hastings.

It was the vision of Nebraska Football Coach Tom Osborne and his wife Nancy more than 30 years ago. Osborne, who is originally from Hastings, came back to his hometown on Thursday to promote his non-profit. 

“Mentoring has given them a sense of purpose and meaning…Purpose and meaning comes from serving other people and sometimes sacrificing,” Osborne said. 

The Hastings TeamMates chapter started in 1999 and grew 68% over the past year.

Mentee Hailey Gordon said her mentor has had an impact on her since the day they met.

“I was so excited, I was ecstatic, that day changed my life," Gordon said. "If I needed a hug, she would give me a hug.”

TeamMates CEO DeMoine Adams said the organization's motto is winning. 

“We are an organization that is about winning," Adam said. "We help our students to be winners of the classroom so that one day they can be winners in this game called life,” 

In Nebraska alone, TeamMates serves 191 schools districts and 200 communities. 

Adams said the program impacts lives.

“Our students are not required to be in TeamMates, they want to be in TeamMates," Adams said. "We don’t believe that students need a mentor; we believe that they deserve to have a mentor."

The program keeps growing outside Nebraska. TeamMates has programs in South Dakota, Iowa, Kansas and Wyoming and plans to keep expanding.