LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Spending the afternoon at the park is just one thing Mark Hamby and his “Little” Joshua Hunter love to do together.
“I look forward to every time we’re together,” Mark said. “We go to the gym and lift weights. We go to the movies. We go get something to eat. We’re just hanging out.”
The two met five years ago through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arkansas.
“Mark is a great big brother and I really thank him for a lot,” Joshua said.
At first glance, it’s clear the 14-year-old and 60-year-old come from two completely different walks of life, but Mark said in a world that is full of hate, Joshua has taught him one simple lesson.
“Joshua and I, we come from completely different backgrounds and it’s taught me that we can all love each other,” Mark said.
According to a national research firm, kids who meet regularly with their mentors are 46-percent less likely than their peers to start using illegal drugs and 27-percent less likely to start drinking.
“I do look up to him [Mark] majority of the time because I can’t look up to my sister and my mom and my brother always, so I have to look up to an adult as well,” Joshua said.
“I wanted to be part of a young man’s life and help mentor them and that’s why I did it.”
