Meet Lara and Josie, buddies from sixth grade to high school graduation.

In middle school, everyone navigates newfound independence and responsibilities. New environments, people, and experiences are all around in this period of growth and change. Luckily for Lara Bruno and Josie Tolson, middle school was also the beginning of a lifelong friendship.

Lara and Josie met doing the school musical together. They performed in a production of High School Musical in seventh grade and a virtual version of Beauty and the Beast when the pandemic struck in their eighth-grade year. During a time where the world felt so isolating and uncertain, Lara and Josie remained friends and got even closer in high school, thanks to Best Buddies.

The Best Buddies program at Strath Haven High School was founded in 2022, thanks to a group of motivated student leaders who wanted to create a space for everyone to be included. Lara first brought Josie to Best Buddies when they were freshmen, seeking a space for her and her friends, sharing, “Best Buddies is a wonderful, amazing thing that we have in high school. You’ve helped my friends with disabilities, so thank you.” The group at Haven is a tight-knit one led with intention and kindness, filled with one-to-one matches that have lasted years, with Lara and Josie a shining example of true friendship.

Lara and Josie love to do all the typical high school activities together: going to Wawa after school, getting pink drinks, and splitting nachos when they go out to eat. They love watching movies, dancing and singing in the car, and going to Prom. But the thing they love most to do together is the school musical, where their friendship began back in middle school. This year, you can catch them on the stage in Strath Haven’s rendition of Mamma Mia!

Lara is there for Josie when she’s having a bad day, Josie sharing, “My favorite thing about my friendship with Lara is that she is the only person that can always make me smile without fail.” “When Josie’s crying or feeling bad, I come up to her and say, ‘you’ll be okay’.” “Lara is seriously the best friend that anyone could ask for, and I am so grateful to have her in my life.”

As Lara and Josie prepare to graduate high school this June, they are sad to not see each other in the hallways or share a classroom anymore, but they know that their friendship will last forever. Lara reflected on her friendship with Josie, saying “Josie is a wonderful, special person, I love her, and I always will, even when she’s in college.” Josie’s life has also been enhanced through her friendship with Lara: “My life has changed since joining Best Buddies. Lara, I seriously cannot imagine my life without her. I can’t imagine my life without being in the Best Buddies program.”