SALT LAKE CITY — Whether it's fishing or just having someone to talk to, Ahmad and Logan have always had each other ever since the decade-long friendship started when Ahmad was just 8 years old.
“I still remember the first time that I met him," said Ahmad of Logan. "He had a rubber band and a leather jacket, and I thought it was the coolest thing.”
“I always wanted my own little brother. I looked into this program a few years after high school, and just felt right," explained Logan.
The two found each other through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah.
“Our goal is to take kids in our communities who might not have those mentor figures in their life and match them with trusted, caring adults who can provide that Big Brother, Big Sister-like relationship," explained the group's Carl Grimm.
And that relationship is exactly what the pair got.
“[I] love to play basketball. Logan always comes to my games, so having him there supporting me was always the best thing, because I grew up in like a single-mom household, two sisters. It's like having that ... man in my life, like an older brother definitely helped me a lot," Ahmad said.
“I can't imagine going through life without having Ahmad as my little brother," added Logan, "he's been there with me through so many different life-changing events."
But some boys in the program aren’t as lucky.
“We have about 90 kids who are waiting to be matched with a big brother, big sister, and a strong majority of those youth who are on our wait list are male littles,” said Grimm.
With so many on the wait list, Big Brothers Big Sisters hopes other men in the community come forward.
As Ahmad is now 18 years old, the pair may have to graduate the program, but never each other’s lives.
“I actually got to watch him walk to get his diploma… it is emotional, because it's like the end of a chapter," shared Logan. "We still very much want to be a part of each other's lives, and that means the world to me.”
