Tips for nurturing unbreakable bonds

When Julie Stufft (CWR ’98) was sworn in as the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Kazakhstan in December, six nurses bursting with pride joined the festivities in Washington, D.C.

To understand why, we must travel back to Case Western Reserve University in 1993 when Stufft—then Julie Leach—met her floormate Janet Short (now Ziol) in Pierce Hall.

Despite their vastly different career ambitions—government service and healthcare—the two became fast friends. As Ziol’s nursing education evolved, so did the size of the pair’s core friend group. 

“Many of us really bonded at first through the small-group clinicals,” said Ziol (CWR ’97), recalling hospital rotations with Josephine Shaia (CWR ’97), Chelsie (Renninger) Jackson (CWR ’97) and Kelly Melgun (CWR ’97). Other friendships soon followed with Tina (Georgievski) Resser (CWR ’97, NUR ’99), Nichole “Nikki”  (DiNino) McWhorter (CWR ’97), Amy (Fries) Castro (CWR ’97), Joyce (Kanaan) Ayoub (CWR ’00, NUR ’09), Melanie (Chlebeck) Stouffer (CWR ’98) and Josie (Hall) Hong (CWR ’97). That makes 11—with all but Stufft later becoming registered nurses.

Though Stufft focused on her own studies and earning two degrees, she was a “frequent victim of blood pressure checks,” Ziol said, between visits to the Cleveland Orchestra, episodes of ER and Friends, and evenings enjoying Lebanese food supplied by Shaia and Ayoub’s mothers. 

After the friends graduated, the demands of rich, full lives—from weddings and children to changing jobs and new cities—made it more difficult to keep in touch. Those living near each other remained close, but it was a 2015 campus event featuring Stufft that spurred a full reunion, and they haven’t looked back. 

Ziol began a group text message—one now marked by daily exchanges. Soon, they were planning annual weekend gatherings featuring themed apparel, karaoke, copious amounts of Lebanese food, and—of course—the joy of longtime bonds.

“This group of women rallies around each other,” Jackson said, describing how “the nurses and the diplomat” gathered to support her after she finished cancer treatment in 2020. “We are bonded for life!” 

Tips on nurturing friendships after graduating

1. Don’t just find time—make it. “We force the stars to align,” Jackson said. While texting is an excellent tool, the friends know nothing beats meeting in person. They’re already planning their next adventures, including a trip next year to Kazakhstan to visit 
   Julie Stufft.
2. Leave judgment at the door. “We all have different views across all different subjects, but we truly respect each other,” Ziol said. With 20 children among them, their culture of respect has been appreciated and absorbed by the next generation. “One of Chelsie’s daughters told me she couldn’t wait to go to college and meet the types of friends her mom has,” Ziol said.
3. Embrace technology. The friends show their love by buying each other small gifts online, like fuzzy socks, during tough times. Or they feed one another’s souls with food deliveries. “When Julie was stuck in isolation in Germany during the pandemic,” Ziol recalled, “Josephine managed to send her a full Italian dinner.”