It’s hard to ignore three-year-old Lydia Calculli’s bright and friendly personality. She loves school. She loves to play outside. And she loves superheroes.
So it came as a surprise to her mom, Erica, when Lydia came home after school with a red and black swollen eye.
“She told me that “a bunch of girls and one boy hit her and a girl threw a shoe at her eye,” Erica said.
Erica couldn’t believe it. She reported the incident to the school, especially since this wasn’t the first time Lydia came home with bruises on her face.
“She’s a very smart, bright child and social,” Erica said. “Lydia has been coming home with bruises on her face. At first, it was very minor and I thought it happened just playing around. Two weeks ago, she had a black eye but didn’t say why. It breaks my heart that other kids are hurting my baby physically and emotionally.”
And Lydia had started to act aggressive at home, which she knew was related to the bullying she’s been receiving at school. She turned to the school, who might be concerned about what’s happening inside their classrooms.
But she was so disappointed when the school didn’t offer any help for her daughter. So she turned to social media instead.
Erica wrote on her Facebook page for help to deal with the bullies and make Lydia feel better.
One of the people who responded was her friend, Jack Asbury III. Jack is an EMT who also lives in the same town of Spring Hill, Florida. Jack sent a message to Erica and asked how “Batman” can help.
Jack has been donning the Batman outfit since 2017, after one of his daughters was born 27 weeks premature at the Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida.
He was inspired to adopt the superhero identity when he saw the “superheroes” who visited the young patients at the hospital.
Since 2017, he’s visited the hospital about eight to ten times as Batman looking for his next sidekick. And if he can’t go there in person, he always sends the children care packages.
“I was heartbroken when I saw her mother’s post she was being bullied in school. [It came] to the point [where] she didn’t want to go. So I reached out and asked if I could walk her to school. Hopefully, this will help her overcome the fear knowing who has her back,” Jack wrote on his Facebook page.
“Batman” arrived at Lydia’s school and met her outside. At first, Lydia became very shy and didn’t want to get out of the car.
“I gave her the superhero dress and explained how she was brave like Supergirl and would love her to be my sidekick,” Jack recalled.
That gift made Lydia smile and step out of the car. That’s when “Batman” asked if she can show him the way to her school. Lydia got all excited, grabbed his hand and led him inside. She brought him to her classroom, where everybody was stunned at his surprise appearance.
Some of her classmates were speechless and there were some who shouted his name with excitement.
“Batman” told the class that Lydia was his best friend and he would be coming back to check on her from time to time. Her classmates were amazed that Lydia was best friends with The Dark Knight and wanted to be friends with her, too.
When Lydia went home that day, she was in a better mood than she’s been in weeks. Lydia told her mom that she had a good day.
The next day, Erica sent a heartwarming message to Jack.
“A little boy came to Lydia as soon as we walked into school this morning,” Erica texted Jack. “[He] said, ‘Hi, best friend Lydia,’ took her hand, and walked her to class. Seriously, made me cry. Thank you so much for being there for my baby.”
Since “Batman’s” visit, Lydia has been transferred to an advanced learning classroom and Lydia has been coming home happier than before.
Erica said she wanted to share her daughter’s story to inspire other parents to become superheroes for their children and to help their children if and when they experience bullying.
Learn more about Lydia and her best friend, “Batman”, in the video below.
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
