As Janie Lauberth posed for pictures with Lindsey Tomlin, her white sneakers were the only piece of clothing or accessory that was not red. They both wore red shorts and shirts. Lauberth had two red stripes drawn under her eyes. Tomlin wore thin sunglasses with red shades and a red bandana. Even Tomlin’s shoes were checkered with red.

Best friends since sixth grade, Tomlin and Lauberth were headed to a red-out themed KHS football game their junior year. The first time Tomlin and Lauberth met was at the end of fifth grade during “Moving in the Middle” where students from different elementary schools took a field trip to NKMS. Tomlin said she received direct messages and comments on her Instagram posts from Lauberth asking her to be friends over the summer before sixth grade, but at the time did not respond since she did not know Lauberth well.

“I knew [Tomlin] a little because our moms were both teachers in [KSD],” Lauberth said. “[She] had an appeal I was drawn to that I thought maybe we’d be good friends.”

Tomlin and Lauberth met again when they were decorating their lockers at the beginning of sixth grade. They talked more, and realized how similar their personalities were.

“We are both some of the most outgoing people when it [comes] to social situations in terms of dancing [and] singing,” Tomlin said. “Our humor is very similar, so we feed off of each other. She’s the person who makes me laugh the hardest.”

Lauberth and Tomlin have been in the same friend group since sixth grade. Both said their friends have noticed how close they are because they often laugh randomly at jokes no one else understands.

“Sometimes we say things at the same time, and we know what each other are thinking,” Lauberth said. “We think about things or certain issues the same way. We have very similar approaches to stuff that we do. [Our personalities] mesh well, and we understand each other well.”

Due to their shared goofy sense of humor, Tomlin said they are always the people wearing crazy outfits at KHS football games or in circles at school dances. Anna De Marco, senior and close friend of Tomlin and Lauberth, described them as the life of the party.

“We went to Krispy Kreme one time at 1 a.m., and they didn’t have the donut Janie wanted, so she started screaming in the drive-thru,” De Marco said. “Lindsey couldn’t stop laughing at Janie. Everyone [in the car] couldn’t stop laughing.”

De Marco said she and her friends appreciate their sense of humor because it cheers others up when they are feeling down. She described their energy as contagious.

“Whenever we [hang out] with people who don’t know Janie and Lindsey as well, you can see how everyone is really entertained and intrigued by what they bring to the table,” De Marco said. “They are not afraid of being themselves, and that’s why a lot of people are drawn to them.”

Although they have many similarities, Tomlin and Lauberth have different passions. Next year, Lauberth’s love for animals and Tomlin’s interest in business are taking them 2,351 miles apart. Lauberth plans to study marine biology at the University of Oregon and Tomlin entrepreneurship at Miami University. Both believe although it might be challenging, they can continue their friendship.

“She is my favorite person in this whole world,” Lauberth said. “I will not want to give that up for anything, and I hope she feels the same way. We will both be willing to put in effort to keep our friendship alive.”

Tomlin said her favorite memory with Lauberth was going to a The Weeknd concert in Cincinnati, Ohio. Lauberth and Tomlin both said they love going to concerts together and are grateful for each other.

“I have someone who I know will be in my life forever,” Tomlin said. “She doesn’t have to stick with me, love me or be my best friend, but she chooses to. It’s nice to know that she is that person I can count on no matter what.”