In this article, the author describes a story about Bernie, who found a strong mentoring relationship with a faculty member--a sympathetic ear, a willing advisor, someone who cared about whether he stayed or left the institution. The story points to the power of advising, communicating, and mentoring in student success and persistence to graduation. It's about building relationships with students, locating places where they get disconnected, and helping them get reconnected. And it demonstrates the powerful effect that out-of-class interactions with a faculty member can have on student persistence. Academic advising is more than clerical recordkeeping; it is the very human art of building relationships with students and helping them connect their personal strengths and interests with their academic and life goals. (Abstract by author)