“We honestly have more of a sister relationship than anything,” Ada Blakemore said.
There’s something beautiful about a friendship that never fails. The rarity in a relationship that endure, fighting, nagging, annoyance, blood, sweat, and tears.
There’s a famous saying that says, “Everyone needs three friends: one to laugh with, one to cry with, and one to grow with. If you find all three of these in one person, you’ve found your best friend.”
Not many people especially at the teenage stage in their life have and keep one friend for more than a couple years, but sometimes, two very special people cross paths in life and just click.
On July 31, 2009 Blakemore was born and a little more than two months later on September 8, Reese Vanek joined her in this world.
While Vanek was carving her path through the halls of Garwood Elementary and Lakeland Middle school, Blakemore was a bit of a scholastic nomad. She had to navigate everything from year-round classmates to the quiet of homeschooling. They lived in the same corner of Idaho, moving in parallel lines that seemed destined never to touch until softball changed that.
Blakemore has lived in Idaho her whole life. She attended a year round school and then went to Betty Kiefer in the 3rd grade, although she was homeschooled 4th and 5th grade. In the 6th grade Blakemore moved to a private school and attended there until the 10th grade when she was convinced to come to Lakeland Highschool (LHS).
Vanek has also lived in Idaho her whole life. She went to Garwood Elementary School, then to Lakeland Middle School and then to Lakeland High School.
The collision finally happened on a dirt diamond when they were nine years old. Joining the KGSAto try their hand at softball, Blakemore didn’t exactly look like a ball player. She wandered onto the field with a tiny glove, wooden bat, and most notably, soccer cleats.
It wasn’t a movie-style ‘best friends at first sight’ moment. It was a slow burn–a bond forged over six years of the blood, sweat, and tears that comes with any sport an athlete might choose. For years the two girls shared a jersey but lived in different worlds. It took nearly four seasons for the teammate label to conform into something deeper. Once it did, the only gap left to fill was the schools they each attended.
Like a snowball effect in its best form, Vanek convinced Blakemore to transfer to LHS, taking the leap of faith, one so much so she only got her schedule the day school started, and then next thing you know, Vanek and her mom had convinced Blakemore to join Vanek’s volleyball team and then the next thing you know, Vanek and Blakemore were more like sisters than they were friends or teammates.
Today, Blakemore and Vanek have one of the closest relationships friends can have. They continue to play high school softball together and they have been pushing each other each and every year to get better. By the time each of them were freshmans, they were already varsity players.
“I feel like we just call eachother out and hold eachother accountable,” Vanek said.
