FINDING COMMON GROUND

Mya and Jada

A College Station native, Big Sister Mya grew up seeing the positive impacts that Bigs had on her friends in school and wanted to serve her community in the same way as an adult. After becoming a volunteer with Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Brazos Valley in October of 2021, Mya was matched with her Little Sister Jada. Their first hangout reflected this time of the year as they went to a coffee shop and painted spooky pumpkins for Halloween.

“It was such a lighthearted experience and we were laughing the entire time. I knew we would be great friends and have a lot of fun together,” Mya recalled.

Since then, Mya and Jada have discovered they enjoy doing little crafts together and bonded over their love of Texas A&M sports. They like to alternate between the two: expressing themselves creatively through watercolor painting one week and enjoying a sporting match the next.

Through crafts or sports, these hangouts have allowed Mya and Jada to find more common interests and get to know each other better. One big thing they learned was that they both share an interest in medicine with Mya actively applying for medical school and Jada wanting to become a pediatrician.

“I love being able to talk with Jada about medicine and share that passion with her. She was already super curious about how to get involved and it was nice to be able to pass along some of the wisdom I have gathered from going through the application process,” said Mya.

Mya isn’t the only one in this duo with wisdom to share. Jada often reminds Mya what it is like to grow up and figure out what you like and dislike while going outside of your comfort zone. Both have encouraged each other to do just that claiming “you never know who you will meet or what you can learn from others.”

As a Big Sister, Mya feels more in-tune with her community, tries new things, reflects on her own childhood in College Station, and sets her expectations higher.

“Jada has taught me so much and I hope I have been able to return the gesture. It is a privilege to be able to learn from and bring out the best in each other.”