There are friends. There is family. And then there are friends that become family.
Over the years, we have seen more than a few friendships develop in some of the most unlikely of places. On this International Friendship Day, we celebrate these connections.
Some are a result of a shared tragedy, some from a shared desire for service, but all make us better humans, and the world a better place.
Here are a few of our favorites.
Lifting each other up after disaster: Jaynatri and Ramawatar
Jayantri (right) has shared his learnings with neighbor Ramawatar and now both are thriving.
Jayantri Kewat and his neighbor Ramawatar Prasad Harizan have known each other for a long time. And in that time, they have seen each other through a lot of ups and downs.
Each year, they worked tirelessly, fruitlessly trying to make ends meet, growing rice and vegetables. But too many times, the river they live near in eastern Nepal had other plans and flooded out their hard work during the rainy season.
Through your support, Jayantri learned about alternative crops and building resiliency as a farmer. He started farming bananas and learning about flood safety, quickly becoming a respected leader. Other farmers started coming to him with questions, so he began training them. He has even gotten involved in local politics. He plans to run in the next election as a ward leader, with hopes to improve access to education for children in his community.
Jayantri has brought his friend Ramawater along with him for every successful step.
Ramawater says he’s learned more from his friend about farming than even the local government’s training. “He is the master of banana farming,” he says. Because of Jayantri’s insights and help, Ramawater makes 25 times his previous income and no longer needs support to succeed.
Now, the rainy season has nothing on these two friends
Broken childhoods, lasting friendship: Diana & Nikita
Nikita and Diana became fast friends after sharing the tragic experience of war in their country of Ukraine.
Little Diana Yurchenko has seen more than her fair share in her seven short years. When Russian soldiers invaded their Ukrainian town in 2022, Diana and her grandparents faced bombing and food shortages. At one point, the shelling soon got so close that her grandmother Lidia used her own body to shield Diana from shrapnel. Their home became unsafe, forcing them to hide in the forest. For weeks, they survived on fish that Diana and her grandfather caught in a stream.
When they finally found safety in a sanatorium supported through your love, Diana had access to hot meals, safe shelter, art therapy and a friend, Nikita.
It is peaceful and calm here, Lidia says.
“The children are still impacted by what they had to go through,” says Lidia, watching her granddaughter play with Nikita, the only other child her age here and with whom she shares virtual first grade classes. “But she’s not as scared as she was before.”
Colorful futures: Nasrin and Rupma
Nasrin attended a Lutheran World Relief sewing program and walked away with a new friend — and business partner.
When Nasrin Hasmi left an abusive partner, taking her 3-year-old daughter Jira, she had never worked before. Without any way to make money, they moved in with her parents. Broken and scared, Nasrin didn’t know how to create the future she dreamed of for her little girl.
Her grandmother had taught her to embroider and do basic stitches when she was young. So, she was excited when she got the opportunity to receive training, supported by your compassion and Lutheran World Relief, to launch a tailoring business.
During the 3-month training, Nasrin learned how to make and mend clothes, repair a sewing machine and operate the financial aspects of a business. She received a sewing machine and other sewing tools. She also met a new friend, Rupma Lohar, who would go on to be her future business partner. Rupma had come to the training after struggling as a farm laborer.
Now the two women are crafting a new life for themselves. They set up shop in a storefront Nasrin’s father owns. Nasrin’s hope for the future is to grow the business, prosper and add boutique items to the shop. She also hopes to help her daughter obtain the education to become a doctor one day.
Together, this friendship is making better — and more colorful — futures for them both!
Friendship through service: The Christian Crafters
The Christian Crafters include Evelyn Garret (front); Karen Corcoran, Becky Lin Feero, Carol Swanson, Miguel Cosmo, Karen Magerlein and Jeanette Gingold (middle row), and Lois Leonard (back). Otherwise blog and social looks great. Thanks!
The Quilt & Kit Ministry at Lutheran World Relief is one of our largest. And while many come for the service and the knowledge that they are helping our neighbors in need, the incredible fellowship found in these groups across the country doesn’t hurt.
The Christian Crafters at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Croton-on-Hudson, New York, is one such group. Their eight members come from diverse backgrounds, including Norwegian, Chinese, Australian, English, German and Puerto Rican.
“We’re like a little United Nations,” says group leader Lois Leonard. “Our common thread is the joy of making quilts and school kit bags for those in need around the world. What an awesome group!”
What’s more, only four of them belong to Our Savior. They recruited the others through creative outreach in the community. Every year, the Christian Crafters host an event on National Quilting Day and invite volunteers from throughout the area to join the fun. Through this annual event, they have more than doubled their membership since the group launched seven years ago — expanding their circle as well as their impact for neighbors in need.
Today, the Christian Crafters is one of the most vibrant ministries at Our Savior, a small congregation that sees between 20-35 worshipers each Sunday. In Lois’ words, the group is “a whole lot of laughs and oh, such diverse creativity.”
Sounds like a good recipe for good friends to us!
