Slushees, skate ramps, and the biggest smile: Madyn & Lydia

FIND BIG DREAMS, AND A PLAYMATE HERE.

Matched on March, 2025, Big Madyn and Little Lydia have spent nearly a year collecting moments that stick: a first outing that ended with the biggest smile, a “REAL” skate park, and laughter that makes mistakes feel safe. It’s mentoring the way it’s meant to be, fun, consistent, and full of possibility.

The first outing that said, “You’re safe here”
Their very first outing was McDonald’s, exactly what you’d pick when you want a kid to feel comfortable fast: familiar, simple, no pressure. Lydia was shy at first, then opened up more as they kept talking. And when she got home, her parent shared she came back with the biggest smile on her face.

Later, when asked what she’d “never forget,” Lydia picked another small-but-perfect beginning: “When we first met, we colored with chalk.”

A REAL skate park (plus slushees on the way home)
Skateboarding became one of their signature adventures. Lydia jumped in mid-conversation to explain that Madyn took her to a “REAL skateboard park, not just outside on road,” eyes wide, whispering “yes” when asked if it was cool.

Madyn shares they got a “little treat on the way back,” and a stopped for slushees and smoothies. She called Lydia “so brave,” and said Lydia encourages her to try new things too. Their mantra is mutual hype: “We’re always hyping each other up that we can do the ramps lol :).”

And from home, Lydia’s parent shared the match is “amazing,” that Madyn is already starting to feel like part of the family, and that Lydia is always excited to go on outings with her.

The roller rink lesson: laughing counts as winning
Lydia tells her friends her Big is “pretty, kind, and funny,” and nowhere does that show up more than the skating rink. After roller skating, Madyn said they were together about three hours and “Neither of us were ready to leave!” Lydia’s version is even better: Madyn “is so funny when she tries to skate”… “yeah and she falls alot but she doesnt get hurt, she just laughs too.”

That’s not just a cute story. It’s a real skill: learning that mistakes don’t have to be scary, they can be something you laugh at, learn from, and try again. No wonder Madyn summed up what matters most to Lydia right now as “Laughing, friends & family.”

One game, two new dreams
Lydia also went to a basketball game with Madyn, something she’d never been to before, and it lit a spark, “now she wants to play basketball herself!”

And that’s the fun of this match: one “first” doesn’t stay just one day. Between the “REAL skateboard park” that has Lydia dreaming about skateboarding, and moments like meeting a guinea pig for the first time (a first Lydia was especially excited about, and her mom specifically asked us not to forget), Lydia keeps collecting new experiences that turn into big possibilities. Now she’s even joked she’s not sure if she’ll be a professional skateboarder or a professional basketball player when she grows up, and honestly, why not both?

In 2026, Lydia’s goals include doing well in school, starting speech therapy (a little nervous, mostly excited), and skateboarding more. Madyn’s goals for their match are to become “more open and patient” as their bond continues to grow. And what she hopes Lydia knows is the heart of it all: “I hope my Little knows that they have challenged me to be more creative and kind. I hope they know that I am always happy to see them!”

This is why mentoring matters: consistent connection is social infrastructure, it strengthens kids, families, and communities from the inside out. Find it here. Become a Big.