LYNN – In a time when attending college is paramount to financial success in adulthood, one Girls Inc. program is making sure young women from the city’s high schools are well prepared for the long and tedious process of applying for and attending college.Thanks to the help of volunteers from Lynn and the surrounding communities, Girls Inc.’s weekly mentor program provides members with help in applying for jobs, college and financial aid, which can go a long way in making sure that disadvantaged and immigrant girls receive a proper college education.The eight college students and eight mentors meet every Wednesday after school to go over everything from college applications to skills needed to interview with admissions specialists. Both mentors and students alike dedicate their time to the program, and no topic is off-limits if it can help provide insight in to what to expect after high school.At the program’s final meeting of the year held Wednesday afternoon, students shared their mentor experiences with the group as a whole over a dinner donated by THA Slice of Lynn.Each student shared their plans for college and how their mentors helped the reach that point, before presenting each mentor with a gift.For the volunteers, helping Girls Inc. students achieve their goals is a rewarding experience, as each individual situation is so unique, and most of the girls have overcome so much to get to where they are now.”What I found was probably the most rewarding experience I have ever had at a volunteer organization,” said Richard Kessel, who along with being vice president of Lynn Lumber also serves on the board of the Lynn Museum, Brotherhood Credit Union and serves as vice president of the North Shore Jewish Community Center. “Every one of these young ladies has had to face challenges that no other student from places like Swampscott or Marblehead ever has.”Kessel said he decided to join Girls Inc. as a mentor after going through the college application process with his two sons. In an effort to make the absolute most of his college investment, Kessel studied everything about the colleges he visited, and purchased countless books on the application process.After his sons were accepted to schools, he decided to use the resources and knowledge of the process that he had obtained during that time to give back to the community.After seeing an advertisement seeking volunteers at Girls Inc., he decided to give the organization a try, and ended up mentoring both of the organization’s 2008 Girl Hero Award winners in their quest to attend college.Both Sokleang Keo and Giselle De la Cruz are now preparing to attend Wentworth Institute of Technology in September.”I realized what an important asset this organization is to the city of Lynn,” he said. “These young ladies face so many challenges. When they were accepted to college it was as exciting to me as it was for my own children.”Marblehead resident and former teacher Margaret Bowen has been a mentor at Girls Inc. for three years, and says 2007-2008 has been the best yet, in part due to the leadership of first year program director Elizabeth Redley.”The first two years I was here involved more tutoring, but this year the focus was on college preparation,” she said. “We worked on job interviews, in big and small groups. Elizabeth is really the key to the success of the program.”Redley, also a teacher, has dedicated herself to the mentor program, and makes sure that every second that the mentors and students are there is being utilized properly. Aside from college preparation, Redley educates the students on finances, loans and investing to make sure they are prepared for the real world.Bowen’s life and career have allowed her to travel and live around the world, including stints in France and Spain. That knowledge of immigrant lifestyle has helped her connect with the largely immigrant population of girls in the mentor program, and provided the opportunity to help both English and Spanish s