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Stadium students hang out with their mentors
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Neighbors | Sarah Foor.Big sister Erin Lorimer (left) spent some quality time with her Stadium Drive sibling Michael Brisky during their meeting on March 17.
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Stadium Drive’s March 17 big brother/ big sister meeting was very different than other months- many younger siblings were practicing for a school show, while others were gone on a school trip. Big sisters Alexis Burns (left) and Sarah Filipovich, without their siblings, were happy to hang out with each other in the meantime.
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Mike Collins (left) and Anthony Habuda have been siblings since October. When they met for their March event, they had a lot to catch up on.
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Mike Hensen (left) and Kareem Hamdan worked on a card together, where they shared why they’re lucky to know each other.
By SARAH FOOR
It might seem that an elementary student and a Boardman High School teenager wouldn’t have a lot to talk about. However, the Boardman “Big Brother/ Big Sister” program, which matches high school students as mentors to elementary school students, proves that age doesn’t get in the way of friendship.
On March 17, the high school mentors visited Stadium Drive Elementary to enjoy a St. Patrick’s Day art event with their young “siblings.” Each team created a card for each other that listed reasons why “I’m lucky to know you because…”
The Boardman High School students were chosen for the program by teacher recommendations, and spend each month building a relationship with one special student.
“We talk about things that the kids like to do,” explained big sister Alexis Burns. “They love to talk and the conversations are always great.”
“I started because I love kids. I’ve done a lot of babysitting. I just like talking to the kids here,” said fellow big sister, Sarah Filipovich.
Stadium Drive student Anthony Habuda and mentor Michael Collins have been “siblings” since October, and Collins says they fit well together because they’re incredibly alike.
“He reminds me a lot of myself at his age, actually,” shared Collins. “Our favorite subjects are history and he plays clarinet in band, just like I did.”
“We look a lot alike, too! I like that about us,” piped in Habuda, referring to their matching black-framed glasses and blond hair.
When the two first met in October, they topped a pumpkin they decorated together with a pair of black frames, to honor their similarities.
“So, why am I lucky to know you?” Collins asked his friend to get their card started.
“Because I’m awesome,” Habuda said simply. Habuda put that thought in writing when he started scribbling the same words on his card a few seconds later.