“There are friends,
there is family,
and then there are 
friends that become family.”
~ Unknown

Kathy met Cheryl in the late 1960s when Kathy’s family moved to Sunnyvale from Kansas City and Kathy was enrolled at Saint Lawrence Elementary School. Their friendship began as fifth grade classmates. For several years they were teammates on the Saint Lawrence Swim Team. After their eighth grade graduation, Cheryl attended Wilcox High School, while Kathy attended Peterson High School. Not surprisingly, for a period of several years, they each lived their own lives and had their own sets of friends, but their involvement on the swim team kept them in contact with each other.

Through the years, Cheryl met Bob and they got married. By the summer of 1984, they had two beautiful children. In August of that year, I began my work at Saint Lawrence. The parish was celebrating their 25th anniversary with a variety of social activities. One of the events was a dance for the high school students of the parish. Some of the young adults in the parish had been recruited to chaperone the dance.

Since my new job included organizing a youth ministry program for high school parishioners, I thought it would be wise for me to check out the dance. That’s where I first met Kathy. She was standing in the foyer of the gymnasium talking with one of the women on the parish staff. She definitely got my attention. I was standing outside the gym conversing with one of the priests of the parish. When Kathy walked outside, I introduced myself to her. That would be the most life-changing introduction of my life.

Cheryl, who lived just around the corner from the church, was there with her little ones. Shannon, who I’m guessing would have been about four years old at the time, was walking. Her little brother, Eric, was in the stroller. Cheryl had noticed my first conversation with Kathy. I guess it was pretty obvious to her that I was smitten. A little while later, Kathy introduced me to Cheryl and her kids. I met Bob a few days later.

It didn’t take long for me to be welcomed into Kathy’s friendship with Bob and Cheryl. We got together for dinner on several occasions. One of those dinners together was just a few hours after I proposed to Kathy. We celebrated our engagement with our good friends. Not surprisingly, they attended our wedding, and the night we came home from the hospital following the birth of our first child, Cheryl prepared an amazing chicken and rice dinner for us. That was in May 1986.

For the past 37 years, Kathy and I, as a married couple, have enjoyed our friendship with Bob and Cheryl. Watching each other’s children grow up has been a pleasure. Celebrating milestones such as birthdays, weddings, and yes, even funerals, has solidified our relationship. And now, as we all embrace our roles as grandparents, we are grateful to be able to share the joys and challenges of this new stage of life.

Kathy and I definitely consider Bob and Cheryl to be family. In fact, when we celebrated Kathy’s milestone birthday last June, they were included in our list of family members who were invited to the party. We are grateful for their friendship, and look forward to many more years of sharing our lives together.