On Saturday, August 13th, Bigs and Littles embarked on a day of adventure at Tree-to-Tree Aerial Adventure Park. It was a perfect summer day to spend outside in nature before heading back to the classroom. When each match arrived, they were greeted by the friendly familiar faces of their BBBS Match Support Specialists. The Tree-to-Tree team set us up with a private area where matches could connect, enjoy snacks, and rest when they needed a break from the adventure.
One of the best aspects of the event was the ability for Littles to meet and connect as a community. With heights being a BIG fear for many, both mentors and their Littles encouraged one another through each course. Chief Program Officer, Carolina, and her Little Sister Yeni were in attendance and Carolina shared, “I’ve never seen my Little so courageous in all the time I’ve known her! She really pushed herself and I could see her confidence soar! Thank You to all the donors who made this activity possible. We conquered the aerial obstacle course, raced each other on the zip lines, and my Little Sister, Yeni mustered up the courage to (safely) plunge off the 65ft treetop! Thank you for this end-of-summer adventure for BBBS Bigs and Littles.”
Big Sister Chiki reflected on her experience with her Little Sister Vanessa and shared, “At this match activity, Vanessa and I encourage each other to step out of our comfort zones! She was terrified at first on the Ziplines. By the end of the day, she had the biggest smile on her face while releasing one hand off the safety rope, yelling woo-hoo as she zipped away!! Her laughter was so contagious. We both took a huge leap of faith as we braved the 65ft Tree Plunge! That was terrifying but we were so proud of ourselves for literally stepping out of our comfort zone! The staff and other matches were so kind and fun to be around. The entire event was amazing!! We will forever be bonded over this experience, we faced our fears head-on, and we are still alive!! On the way home, we talked for 45 minutes non-stop that this was an amazing experience and how we both overcame what we were once scared of!
Big Brother Zackary told us more about overcoming his fear of heights with his Little Brother Taye by his side, “Tree-to-Tree was a great bonding experience for Taye and I. Being 9 years old, he is just old and big enough to do more of the “adult” things, so he was excited to do the most challenging parts of the course. He likes climbing around on things, so it was the perfect activity for him. Both of us had different levels of fear when it comes to heights, mine being quite a bit higher. But I think it was good for my little to see me feeling vulnerable and out of my element. A lot of the stuff we do comes easy to me just based on experience so it’s good for him to see me take on something I’m not very confident about and how we can help each other through those times, it was cool to help each other through those spots. Being at an activity with other matches and getting to see other Bigs interacting with their Littles was really cool. It gave me a bigger perspective on the impact of the program on the kids. I even helped another Big overcome his fears on the high-level courses. It was a really connecting experience for all of us.”
We host match activities year-round for Bigs and Littles! You can click here to support, to donate today, to invest in enriching the lives of Littles right here in our community! To see more photos from this day of adventure, click here to visit our community Flickr.
