What does your friend group mean to you?

While some parts of the college experience are more academically focused—like majors, class schedules, internships, and deadlines—we can’t forget about the friendships made along the way. These relationships tend to last far beyond graduation. We asked the Augsburg community to share photos of their friend groups across social media and A-mail. Here are some of their responses:

Pictured above: Cynthia Lindsay ’24, Sarah Runck ’24, and Sarah Freedland ’23

“My friend group has provided me a sense of belonging, a support system, and they helped me discover who I am while at college. While being away from home, I was able to connect with others similar to me and formed bonds that will continue after college. They provided me a home away from home and helped create stories I still hold on to today. They will forever be my family.” —Sarah Runck ’24

Pictured above: Cece ’29, Carly ’30, Haylee ’30, and Brilee ’30 

“I love my friends because they’re always there to support me no matter what the circumstances are.” —Brilee Nelson ’30

Pictured above: Julissa Nieto ’28, Gabriela Acosta ’28, Jazmin Ortiz ’28, Johanna Alvarado ’27, Brenda Jachero ’28, Marvin Guamanquispe ’28, and Domenica Taco Proano ’27 

“One thing I love most about my friends is that we share the same culture, and that they are supportive, genuine, and always encourage me to keep going, even during difficult times.” —Domenica Taco Proano ’27

Pictured above: Aidan Wippich ’27, Faye Kelley ’28, Hannah Rust ’28, Emmie Sandifer-Stech ’26, Avery Cheeseman ’26, Paul Ellertson ’26, Diego Perez ’28, and Maxwell Danzel-Lage ’27

“I love that my friends are kind and amusing!” —Faye Kelley ’28 

Pictured above: Pan-Asian Peer Mentoring members
Top row: Dejchia Lor ‘27 and Naw Blu ’26
Middle row: Yan Urrizalqui ’27, Jennifer Vo ’26, and Rachelle Cha ’26
Bottom row: Tommy Lee ’26

“It means support from people who are passionate about the same things. It means having a team who’s excited about building and creating projects/events that are for the community.” —Yan Urrizalqui ’26

Pictured above: Hmong Women Together members Goldy Moua ’27, GaoNou Vang ’26, and Eli Yang ’27

“It means honesty, teamwork, communication, and having each other’s back. It’s knowing how to have a good time and when to take things seriously” —GaoNou Vang ’26

Pictured above: Augsburg Black Women Association members Cecelia Dauphine ’28, Maya Miller ’26, Camille Hunte ’26, and Ajulu Otong ’26

“Unity, Black sisterhood” —Camille Hunte ’26

Pictured above: Andrea Hansen ’81, Laura Kasdorf ’81, Julie Moinicken ’81, Maureen (Webster) Hoeffler ’81, Linda (Roop) Svendsen ’81, Janna (Wallin) Haug ’81, Mary Lou (Schlosser) Suss ’81, Susan (Dahlgren) Sackrison ’81, and Mary Beamish ’81

“Our group of friends from the Augsburg Class of 1981—loosely known as ‘the Sigma women,’ named for the Sigma house many of us lived in during our senior year at Augsburg—has stuck together through thick and thin since graduating from Augsburg. We have gathered for weekends in the woods as well as lunches in the city. We’ve pursued varying paths personally and professionally, but have always drawn strength from the support we’ve found by gathering regularly to share our stories.

“Janna (Wallin) Haug says, ‘I think it is a rare and valuable opportunity to have a friend group that has met for several decades after college. I treasure the annual weekend trips to the cabin in Wisconsin as well as the occasional meet-ups in between where we can talk about books, food, politics, religion, old friends we have in common, kids, grandkids, and even emerging health concerns as we grow older. We have discovered new restaurants together, museums, libraries, gift shops, gone hiking, and geo-caching. We’ve crafted together, watched movies, baked apple pies, shared recipes, and played games. The value of a group like this is the ability to share memories from the past, experience and learn new things together, and talk about our future.’

“Our community at the Sigma house had a mission of global concerns—organizing programming around world issues on campus—so we learned then to work together on our projects. That group togetherness has endured over the years.

“As Susan (Dahlgren) Sackrison puts it: ‘Living together in a house as opposed to apartments in our senior year is what makes for our large group of friends. We may not be ‘besties’ but we have an enduring friendship over 40 years. I think this is because of the values of Augsburg University and urban living.’” —Mary Beamish ’81

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