A’Nyla & Nika

​Meet our June Match of the Month, A’Nyla and Nika! This dynamic Disney loving duo are a part of our School Based Program and have been matched since December of last year. 

These two love all things Disney, especially the Princesses, and on the very first day they met, Nika brought A’Nyla a Princess Tiana wallet and the two have been the best of friends ever since. Nika is originally from California, which absolutely thrilled A’Nyla, and the two of them already have big dreams to visit both Disneyland and Disney World as well as all of the Disney parks around the world. We are so excited to see what comes next for this match-congratulations to you both! ​

INGITE.

Nika has done an amazing job igniting A’Nyla’s creative potential and her desire to do good deeds in the world. The pair spend much of their time together doing arts and crafts such as making yarn animals, designing unique spirograph art tools, and even creating hilarious clay lightsaber/hot dog hybrids. They also have set some wonderful creative goals, including making slime and completing one more science project before the school year’s end, and are putting together plans to spend next school year helping people who are experiencing homelessness. No matter what this match gets up to, it always involves the creativity, fun, beauty, and caring that all Littles need to grow into their full potential. ​

EMPOWER.

Nika also does a great job of empowering A’Nyla’s potential by letting her interests lead the way, which is how they ended up making friendship bracelets for each other this past Valentine’s Day. Both of them took their time and carefully picked out the perfect beads for each other and they still wear them to this day. That same day, A’Nyla also discovered that she really loved strawberry hard candies, so Nika brought her a whole bag of them the following week. Having adults in their lives who pay attention to their likes and dislikes and give them the space to explore their interests is an integral part of helping children feel empowered. ​

DEFEND.

After seeing an A+++ math test in A’Nyla’s locker, Nika exclaimed WOW and opened a dialogue with her about school, her test, and math in general, which left them both with huge glowing smiles. When A’Nyla found herself feeling shy and uncertain of herself during an icebreaker game that required her to say nice things about herself out loud, Nika gave her encouragement, warmth, and reassurance, which is exactly what A’Nyla needed in that moment.  In noticing and acknowledging A’Nyla’s hard work, talents, and uniqueness without hesitation, Nika defends A’Nyla’s potential by showing her that she is worthy, valuable, and capable. Congratulations again to this wonderful match-we can’t wait to see what the future holds for both of you! ​