Friendships are made for a reason, a season or a lifetime

Throughout my lifetime I’ve become pretty familiar with the saying that people come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.

I think the first time I really felt a “move” was when I was 10-years-old and my family moved from our home in Portage, Indiana about 45-minutes away to LaPorte. It was the summer before I entered fifth grade and I was excited to be near my cousins and thought the move would be great. 

The move for me meant that I would leave friends I had known from the neighborhood, friends I had known as long as I could remember, Lori Bonez, Katie Hatala, Melissa Fekete, Holly Foreman, etc.

But I moved to LaPorte and shortly I had become close with friends with whom I still get together with today, Jen Howes, Gwen Burger, Meghan Martinsen. We were like the four musketeers in middle school.

In high school, I never really found my exact niche.  I was co-editor of the newspaper, co-editor of the yearbook, in basketball and softball and friends with people who were jocks, artists and those who never even wanted to enter the doors at LPHS. I also made great friends, Jody Ryan and Michelle Reese through my work in the kitchen at LaPorte Hospital.

Moving on to college, I made great friends like Emily Steadman, Julie Walker and Laura Baich and several others who made my years in Bloomington the best years away from home that I could ask for. After I moved back home to work and go to school, I relied on my best friend, Tearsa Schable, to get me through times where I felt alone.  I also made good friends at the LaPorte Herald Argus and at IUSB.

Then, it was South Bend. A place I’ve learned to call home and a place where sometimes I don’t realize just how many people I’ve met! I moved here in September of 2001 and I’ve met people at AAA, Brenda Case, Cristie Carter, Diane Chrzan, Kathy Stec, and so many more…  I’ve met people at some bars… Brenda Wilson, Robin Eaton, Katie Reaves, Russ Miner, Gary and Danny, Carol Whitteberry, Kathleen Rozanski, Ken Odynski, ok… so many more! And now to my friends at The Medical Foundation, Tamara Fairbank, Mary Swift, Connie Bratton, Brett Colter, Laura Broadstreet, Joyce Simpson and so many more.

It’s hard to decide or…better yet, maybe they chose me? Who becomes a friend who is there for a reason, a season or a lifetime? How do we know? How do we choose? Do we choose them, do they choose us?

This week, we bid farewell to Tamara Fairbank and wish her the best of luck as she moves to New Hampshire. It’s with sadness that I lose a great friend who has brought me lots of laughs and good times throughout the six years I’ve known her.  But at the same time, I’m happy for her. I wish her nothing but the best as she moves to what she thinks is a great place to live…. Really, Tamara….SNOW????? J Couldn’t help it!

As you drive away in the “tank,” I hope you will remember all of your Indiana friends and that you will think of us as friends for a lifetime… not just a reason or a season… Best of luck, my friend… may you enjoy this new chapter in your life.