Friendship: Fun & Play

James (on right) and Romel in 2018

Having fun and playing together is a pretty normal goal for many of our mentor & mentee meetups. Children and adults of all ages enjoy fun and play, and many fond memories are made from these times together.

Sometimes the fun and play can lead to wider recognition like it has for one of our mentees, Romel, who spent many hours skating with his mentor James.

James and Romel first met almost 7 years ago. They were first matched because of their love for skateboarding. Romel has taken his passion for skateboarding to a whole other level into his teens. He is currently sponsored by skateboard company, the Monarch Project and was featured last month on Thrasher magazine’s Twitter feed!

Romel has grown in so many ways, with his skating abilities being only one aspect of the growth. In 2015 James told us about taking Romel to Skate church:

He loved it. He really impresses me with his skateboarding! Dads are always like, “Is that you son or brother? He’s really good!” I’m a proud friend :) 

Thank you James and to all of our mentors who spend time intentionally playing and having fun with their mentees!