Better Together is a feature that showcases students  and staff members who make each better through leadership practices.

Brooke Giemza & Natalie Ruffin 

MARCH BETTER TOGETHER 

Two 7th graders continue their journey with each other as they go through the WYWLA middle school experience, here is their story...  

We first met in the school library and later connected on the school bus. Brooke is a great friend, and I would consider her very loyal. She is always good to talk to. If one of us happens to feel down or upset, we always lift each other up and encourage each other. No matter what, we always bring each other so much joy. We love having sleepovers and talking on the phone! We share a lot of similarities. Some include playing volleyball and doing arts and crafts. 

-Natalie Ruffin 

Natalie and I met on the first day of 6th grade, in the library, when we sat at the same table and played a game together. At the beginning of 6th grade, we realized that we rode the same bus, so we started sitting together and chatting. At first, we only talked to each other on the bus, but over time, we became good friends in school, too. Natalie is outgoing and silly, and she loves to spend time with people. The first thing I liked about her in 6th grade was her extroverted and talkative personality, especially because I am not always the most talkative person.  She is always there for everyone, including me. She's open to helping with classwork, advice, or even just a call so we can keep each other company. Natalie has made my WYWLA experience much more interesting and fun. Natalie and I both love reading, baking, art, and hanging out with friends. Sometimes we even attend church together! 

-Brooke Giemza 

Lily Strader & Mona Segule 

MARCH BETTER TOGETHER 

Two 8th graders remain a strong duo throughout middle school, lets hear their story...

We first met in 6th grade. We sat together at lunch in 7th grade and then just started talking and hanging out more.Mona is very supportive and mature, but she's also really fun to be around and she always has something funny to say. We tend to encourage each other to try new things and help each other with schoolwork. We also encourage each other to step out of our comfort zones, like the horror movies! We go to the movies, we hang out at my house, sometimes we play tennis, and we went to the state fair together last year. We like a lot of the same music, we talk about the same TV shows, we read similar books and series, and we both enjoy tennis. 

-Lily Strader, 8th grade 

We first met each other in 6th grade but the 7th grade lunch table is what really brought us closer. Lily is an extremely kind person. We always encourage each other to try new things and help each other with homework. We love watching movies together and one time we went to a concert! We both love music and Pinterest, which we bond over. 

-Mona Segule, 8th grade