Zawadi has known Butsina all her life. She showed up and interrupted Butsina’s toddlerhood, but Butsina has since forgiven her. Zawadi is now not only Butsina’s favorite sister (okay, her only sister), but also her best friend. She currently lives in Guam, but that doesn’t stop her from being the best sister anyone could ever hope for.
Ikenna is Chiedo's little brother. Many say he's smart, athletic and charismatic, but they forget to mention that Chiedo taught him everything he knows (although Ikenna somehow always executes better). Ikenna has come a long way from the days of playing Power Rangers with his older brother in the backyard. Over the years, Ikenna has grown to be an incredible citizen of the world, motivated to increase access to education to underserved populations and providing opportunities for people around the world to exceed their potential. His caring nature continues to be a source of inspiration for Chiedo.
On a summer evening almost 12 years ago, a few weeks before the start of freshman year at Seattle University, Butsina received a call from a girl who said she was excited they were going to be roommates. They talked for over an hour that evening. Little did they know there would be countless more conversations like that in their future. Ofiong and Butsina have been as close as sisters since then. They have challenged each other through nursing school, their first nursing job together, and grad school. Ofiong currently lives in New York, and has continued to be a constant source of support for Chiedo and Butsina, despite the 3000 miles between them.
Chiedo and Satyan met in 2007 when Chiedo first moved to San Francisco. From the beginning, they became good friends through their constant conversations (and sometimes debates) over hip hop, ninja turtles, The Fresh Prince, and almost anything related to 90s pop culture. They have shared many adventures together, some they can't (or choose not to) remember, but have always been there for each other.
Butsina met Angelie on the first day of high school in Monterey. Over the next four years, she became Butsina’s closest friend. She was the one who explained American cultural norms like prom and homecoming, and why people kept asking Butsina whether she played basketball. She introduced Butsina to Filipino food and warned her not to eat Balut. While Butsina went to Seattle for college and Angelie moved to the warmth of Los Angeles, it always felt like no time had passed every time they visit each other. Angelie currently lives in the Monterey Bay area and is pursuing a Graduate degree at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies.
Chiedo met Ryan 10 years ago when they first started working as engineers at Adobe. Being one of the first people Chiedo met after moving to the city, they quickly learned they had much in common and a lot of their best nights followed the same pattern. First they would start the night with good food and drinks. Second, they would spend the beginning of the night loudly playing video games at the behest of Ryan's neighbors. And last would venture out to a local bar or club, with the best nights ending up in Karaoke bars belting 90s hits to a crowd of "eager" listeners. As time went on, Chiedo and Ryan only became better friends even as Ryan’s jobs forced him to move out of California and to cities such as London, Chicago and now New York.
Right after her dad dropped her off at college, Butsina was standing in her new room slightly overwhelmed with the amount of unpacking and room arranging she had to do. She was about to get started when a ball of energy bounced into her room, saying “hi, I’m Jo! I was bored so I’m walking around meeting everyone in the dorm, you should come with me.” And that was it! The birth of their friendship involved disregarding their responsibilities that day, annoying other dorm residents, and undertaking a mission to find (and eat) all the best food around campus. Butsina and Jo have since become more sensible adults. Joanna currently lives in Nampa, Idaho and is responsible for molding the young minds of American elementary school students into decent global citizens.
Justin and Chiedo met while they were both attending Stanford. Living in the building next door and then later across the hall from each other, they built their friendship throughout college. Upon graduating, they spent two amazing weeks traversing the sites of Europe and discovering the amazing taste of real gelato. Over the years, Justin and Chiedo have continued to be friends, exchanging ideas and often plotting get rich-quick schemes, none of which have come to fruition yet. Chiedo was proud to be a groomsman for Justin at his wedding, enough to take wedding photos in 2 feet of snow. Even though they don't see each other as much as they should, when they are together it is always a good time.
Butsina met Koi during her sophomore year when she attended her first African Student Association meeting on Campus. Ofiong had told Butsina she had recently met the President of ASA and thought they would all get along. It turns out Ofiong was right. Koi has been big a sister to Ofiong and Butsina, and has continued to support and encourage them both since they met. Koi and Butsina took their first international girls trip in 2014 for Koi’s birthday and hope to continue the tradition with a trip to Kenya someday. Koi currently lives in Seattle and is constantly trying to convince Chiedo and Butsina that they should move back.
Will and Chiedo met their freshman year at Stanford and have been good friends ever since. Will's energetic presence and his unique sense of humor has always made him the center of any event. But his good and caring nature is what people love about him. Chiedo and Will have always served as confidantes for each other, each providing advice when the other needed it. Will's advice is usually good, while Chiedo's is almost guaranteed to be wrong. But through this they have remained friends and shared countless memories of non-stop laughter.
The first day of college orientation, all freshmen were divided into orientation groups. As Butsina stood in her orientation group, she started speaking to Leah (everyone had name tags that week) and realized Leah lived across the hall from Jo. Butsina and Leah were inseparable during the “mandatory fun” activities of orientation and discovered over the next few weeks that they liked hanging out even when it wasn’t mandatory. They have been friends since. Leah is currently the only friend from Seattle U whom Butsina managed to convince to move to California, the rest are a work in progress. She currently lives in Sacramento and frequently visits Chiedo and Butsina in San Francisco.
In 2007, Steve and Chiedo met while helping a mutual friend move to a new apartment. As they were talking, they learned that they both worked at Adobe and would eventually be on the same team. Steve is the kindest person that Chiedo knows (a bit too nice), once again affirming the fact that Canadians are just nicer than the rest of us. Steve has always been a friend that Chiedo can count on. Whether Chiedo needed advice on nerdy programming projects, or Chiedo’s need to go out for late night food, Steve was always there without hesitation. When Chiedo was stressing over the proposal, Steve helped him plan, and even disguised himself and hid on the hills of Twin Peaks to grab the perfect proposal photo.