On a fated day in 2015 Dre and my path crossed for the first time. I was playing golf professionally on the LPGA Symetra Tour at the time and that week we happened to be playing at Atlanta National Golf Club where Dre and her family were members. There was a junior clinic put on by the tour I was volunteering to help with and Dre was taking photos of the clinic. I love photography, so I went up to talk to her about it. I learned her kids were in the clinic I was volunteering to help with and I would be meeting them later on. Spoiler alert, I had a BLAST with her kids, especially the sassy 10 yr old McKenzie. After the clinic Dre offered to be my host family anytime I was playing in ATL. From that moment on our threads were forever intertwined as not only my host family, but great friends for years to come. Dre's family became my family. Eventually Dre and her ATL based family moved to Sioux Falls, SD. Fast forward 5 years after they landed in SD and I became the women's golf coach at SDSU a mere 50 minutes away in Brookings. Even crazier still, in line of events only God could orchestrate her daughter McKenzie wound up playing for me at SDSU. Remember the sassy 10 year old? Well now she is 21 and graduating this year. To say our friendship was written in the stars is an understatement. Sometimes God brings people into your life and makes sure they never leave. And those are the very best people!

Cheese and Crackers if you will. This Wisconsin cheese head and Florida cracker were meant to be besties. Meeting at the ages of 6 and 7 years old as the only two girls playing boys ice hockey, we became fast friends! Not only did we get to play hockey together growing up, we both got to play high school golf together too. Having gold fish fights around the putting green waiting for our teammates to finish. Skiping the high school cafeteria to go hangout in our golf coaches office for lunch and have access to his mini fridge and microwave was elite level high school lunch time. Although we never went to the same college or lived in the same areas after high school we've stayed close friends. Ali was the person who drove cross country with me from Florida to California when I went to play in LPGA Tour Q-School. A month on the road with your best friend across the country, not many people have the opportunity to get to do that! The laughs and memories we made will last us a lifetime just like our friendship.

When I first moved to Asheville, NC to become the head women's golf coach at UNC Asheville I never knew it was going to bring some of my favorite people into my life. Laura being one of them. We both played on the LPGA Symtera Tour at the same time which was prior to me moving to AVL. Although we didn't spend much time together on tour, we knew of each other. When I moved to AVL in August of 2018, Laura reached out to me to let me know she lived in the area. She asked if I ever wanted to hang out, go on a hike or grab a drink. I was so happy to have someone in town I knew, and could hang out with. We became fast friends and by the time October had rolled around, not even a month and a half after moving to AVL, I knew I had found one of my people. She's laid back, stomach crampingly funny, loves cats and is so easy to get along with. She's the reason I have Tank & Turtle, my two little fur babies. With our shared love of the outdoors and photography we spent a lot of time finding picturesque hikes in the area. Some of which we would take Tank (one of my fur babies) on with a harness and leash. Turtle could never, he's too much of a scaredy cat. As our friendship progressed during our time in AVL Laura and I spent a lot of time together. I inevitably became the 3rd wheel to Laura and her fiancé Joey. Laura and Joey are the kind of people that walk into your life and never walk out. My roommate in AVL, Jess, who is also one of my bridesmaids was also friends of Laura & Joey via my friendship with the. We were both invited to Joey & Laura's wedding in Michigan. But it was at the same time we were supposed to have a tournament for the UNCA Women's Golf team. Jess and I were the coaches for the program at the time. We found a way to make it work, flying out of Greenville, SC which was where the tournament was taking place. We spent less than 18 hours in Michigan to get to attend Laura & Joey's wedding celebrating their love and coming together. Then flew back first thing the next morning to get our team to the tournament. Laura is the kind of friend you do what ever it takes to be there for her on her special day because she'd do the same for you. Most of my favorite memories living in Asheville involve Laura. Whether it was on the golf course, driving to random areas of the blue ridge parkway to catch a sunset or the fall leaves changing color, hiking or hanging out at home. She was solidified in my life and laughter was never in short supply. Laura is a fellow crazy cat lady, college golf coach, and retired professional golfer. It's funny how people end up coming into your life. The ones that stay forever, you know a higher power had a hand in ensuring your paths converged at a certain point in your life.

I am proud to call this special lady my sister in law but more importantly my friend. It has been amazing getting to know Kasey over the years when she was first introduced to our family as Curtis's girlfriend. Ive spent Thanksgiving's with Curtis, Kasey and her family. She's gone on a multitude of family vacations with ours. I've seen my brother grow as a man, husband and father because of her and I couldn't be more proud of the two of them and the family they have created for themselves. Nowadays she and Curtis are married and gave me the great honor of becoming an aunt. Not once, not twice but 4 times over. Watching Kasey become a wife/mom and see her raise my nephews with my brother has been awe inspiring. Kasey is one of the kindest, most thoughtful and sincere people I have ever met. Regardless of what's going on in my life or hers she always makes time to ensure I am a part of her and my nephews lives. Whether it's through FaceTime or updating the family group chat with photos and texts of the happenings in their family. It makes living far away from them a little sweeter knowing she makes an effort to include me in what ever way she can. Back in 2018 I was given the honor of being a bridesmaid on Kasey and Curtis's special day. It warms my heart to know Kasey is not only my sister in law but a friend I want standing beside me on my special day as well.

I met Kat on the putting green of a college tournament I was playing in for Ole Miss. Kat was interested in attending Ole Miss and playing on the golf team the following year. We got to chatting, which you will find the two of us never in short supply of something to talk about. Throughout our conversation I learned she was from Fox Chapel, PA which is just across the river from Oakmont, PA where my dad grew up and Grandparents still lived. Lo and behold we find out that her Father Earl Luttner had crossed paths with my Grandfather Dick Schneider in business over the years. We started talking about all things PA, golf and Oakmont Bakery and reveling in the connection we had via our family's. The next year Kat was a freshman at Ole Miss and I was a Senior. We were sisters from different misters immediately. Our personalities alone were larger than life, but put us together and you get chaos of the best kind. The belly cramping and wetting your self from laughter type of chaos. We were the class clowns of the women's golf team at Ole Miss. We made sure everything we gave our absolute best effort in everything we did but boy did we have fun while doing it. Some might have seen it as us not taking things seriously enough, when in reality we both knew how to enjoy the awesome life we were living. After I graduated from Ole Miss Kat and I have kept in touch. We don't get to see each other that often. But our phone calls and FaceTimes are a plenty. We have continued to be constant and consistent figures in each other's lives and can always count on the other for an ear to listen, a shoulder to lean on or enough laughter to make you pee your pants. If you're looking to get a word in when we are engaged in conversation you better not look for an opening and just cut right in. It's a wonder when one of us takes a breath. Fun fact: don't be the last one to hug Earl when Kat is saying good bye to him.

I was paired with Jess in the practice round for the Florida State Amateur Stroke Play in 2012. I had just finished my sophomore year at Daytona State College and was about to start my first year at Ole Miss as a junior. Jess was a few years younger than me and looking to play at DSC when we were paired together. From that day on our lives have been forever intertwined since. Between the two of us we eded up playing college golf on 3 different college teams for the same 2 coaches. When I graduated from Ole Miss, the assistant I played for there ended up taking the head coach position at UNCG where Jess would end up playing after her 2 years at DSC. After college golf was over for us both we continued to stay friends and see each other over the years. Whether is was because I was playing on tour and had a tour stops in Albany, NY where Jess and her family lived, or Jess staying with my family when competing in summer tournaments in Bradenton, FL. Once our competitive golf days were over and we both found ourselves working in the golf industry, Jess as an assistant golf professional and me as a college golf coach. Jess and I always talked about how fun it would be if we ever got the chance to coach together. When I took over as the head coach at UNC Asheville, I was able to work with the course the team played at to help create a position for Jess so she could continue her PGM certification and travel with the team as our volunteer assistant. The dream of coaching together had become a reality. Did I mention when she moved to Asheville to coach with me, she also ended up dup being my roommate? From the random day that we were paired together in a practice round at the Ritz Carlton Golf course in Orlando, I never would have guessed Jess and my paths would cross so frequently over the years. From Jess caddying for me in professional golf tournaments, or me caddying for Jess during her PAT, to being roommates during the 4 years I lived in Asheville, I never would have expected any of it to be on our bingo card. You never know of the plan, when you meet someone randomly, that God has in store to make sure you are solidified in each other's lives forever.

It is crazy to think Brooke and I are going on 19 years of knowing each other. We have seen each other through all seasons of life and she is the sister I never knew I needed. We met at the Lakewood Ranch High School girls golf team tryouts. When she showed up to try outs she had a brace on her knee. I remembered seeing someone on campus earlier that day who looked similar to Brooke and was also wearing a knee brace but over a pair of jeans. This is an important detail because it was about 95 degrees. I just couldn't get the picture of this girl in jeans and a knee brace out of my head with how hot it was. Then lo and behold we end up being teammates on the women's golf team. Brooke and I became inseparable. When I was old enough to drive and didn't have a car, my parents would drive me to Brookes house and then I would drive us her Grandmothers SUV to school. Mammaw hated the school drop off and pick up line and was happy she didn't have to drive in it and we were happy we had some independence. We'd meet other girls from the golf team when school got done and I would drive everyone that lived in the same neighborhood to practice, in Mammaw's car. Being teammates doesn't even begin to describe the friendship Brooke and I have developed over the years. Brooke was raised by her grandmother, Mammaw, and she was everyone's grandma. The moment you stepped foot in their house you became a part of their family. Mammaw's house was the go to hangout spot. Our parents never worried because they knew we were at Mammaw's. If we were getting home late or past curfew it was because we in a heated game of Hand and Foot and weren't paying attention to the time. Some of these games would go until 1 or 2 o'clock in the morning and mammaw would whoop our butts every time. Through every stage of our lives we have always been a steady figure in each other's lives. No amount of distance or time spent away from each other left our friendship feeling strained. Every place we've lived we've visited each other. I've watched Brooke marry her best friend and after a difficult journey become parents to the sweetest little boy. I couldn't imagine getting to marry my best friend and not have Brooke standing by my side.

The Cliffs at Walnut cove didn't realize the friendship it would be creating when it brought Allison and I together. Allison is another friend from my time in Asheville, NC. As the head women's golf coach at UNC Asheville, my team practiced at Walnut Cove. Allison was the events manager there at the time. We were hosting a large Division 1 golf tournament at Walnut Cove where Allison would be my main point of contact. At first our relationship was mostly due to work. But each time we had a meeting about the event we would get to chatting and quickly realized we had a lot in common and became great friends. With a shared love for the outdoors and hiking, we spent many an afternoon chasing down waterfalls or driving out in the middle of the night to hike out at 2:00am so her husband Adam could do some astrophotography. Late nights playing board games or watching movies were a weekly activity. Lunch time walks at the park with fur babies were a midday staple. Allison would come over to my apartment at lunch time sometimes and hangout on the couch either reading or getting an afternoon snuggle with my fur babies, Tank & Turtle. Allison is the one who rekindle my love for reading and Barnes & Noble thanks her, Jack....not so much. Having weekly family dinners with our friend group in Asheville is one of the things I miss most about not living there anymore. Allison and I would get together for dinner at each other's house alternating who would cook one week from the next. Two of my other bridesmaid Kaelynn and Jess were a part of family dinner nights as well. And as it grew to become a weekly thing a different person or couple would host the next week, always on the same night since most of us worked at Walnut Cove and had the same days off. We would have dinner, and then play board games or watch a movie. It became a tradition I looked forward to every week. Now it's something I get to look forward to when I go back to visit our core group of friends. All of which will be at Jack and my wedding!

Kaelynn and I met when she started working at the Cliffs at Walnut Cove in Asheville, NC as their assistant golf professional. I believe it was November (this is important later). The director of golf was giving Kaelynn a tour and I was either at the club with the team for practice or working at the club myself that day. When we were introduced I immediately asked if she wanted to come hangout with my roommate Jess and friend Allison, both also worked at Walnut Cove. Later that day Kaelynn arrived to Jess and my apartment. She had no idea what she was in for when she came over. I can guarantee she didn't expect to walk in to my apartment only for us to be gluing Christmas ornaments to a poster board arranged like a wreath and us bribing my cats to poke their heads through for a Christmas photo shoot. (this was in November so it was a social acceptable time of year to be doing so.) I guess Kaelynn decided we were her kind of people because for the next 14 days straight we ended up hanging out. We've been laughing together ever since. Whether it was going hiking, playing golf, finding a new restaurant to try, going to a death metal bar, attending a Jonas Brothers concert, running ladies day together, or convincing Kaelynn she also needed 2 cats in her life. Asheville had once again brought me another person who would be in my life for the long haul.