Ask HN: How did you meet your mentors? What was their impact on you?

[jlevers]

Many people who are excellent at something cite their mentors as a major reason for their skills and success. If you've had an impactful mentor of any kind (not just programming-related), how did you meet them and how did they impact you?

Or, mentees: how did you decide to take on someone less experienced? What was the experience of mentoring someone like?