The Baylor Connection They Never Saw Coming

In 1995, a Texan and a Californian found themselves living across the hall from each other in South Russell Hall at Baylor.

On the surface, Amanda Vester Jenkins and Allison Cravens Wilkerson seemed to have little in common. Amanda was a creative fashion student, while Allison spent more time on the soccer field than in the clothing aisle.

But a late-night homework assignment gave the two freshmen an opportunity to start reminiscing about their high school years. They discovered that both of their parents had struggled with substantial cancer diagnoses. While their parents were doing OK at the moment, Amanda and Allison bonded over emotional trauma far beyond their years.

“At the time, I obviously had no idea what God had in store and how Baylor would play such an integral part in bringing our family together.”  – Amanda Jenkins

They continued to chuckle over the similarities in their childhoods. Then came the detail that seemed almost too coincidental: Their parents had been married on the exact same day of the exact same year, hundreds of miles apart.

These similarities helped form a fast bond during their freshman year. Amanda and Allison moved into an apartment together and became best friends and roommates for the next three years.

But during the spring of 1999, both families faced new difficulties.

Amanda learned that her dad’s cancer had returned, while Allison watched her mom’s diagnosis grow more serious. In April 1999, Allison’s mom passed away. 

Amanda was the first person Allison turned to, helping her through those first few days.

Then, just as things started to stabilize, about three weeks later Amanda’s dad also passed away. As Baylor seniors, Amanda and Allison leaned heavily on each other to make it through the end of the spring semester.

As they walked through those losses together, their friendship began to extend beyond the two of them, drawing their families closer in the months that followed. In August 1999, Amanda married Christopher Jenkins. Allison was a bridesmaid and took her dad, Tom, as her plus-one to the wedding. 

Amanda’s wedding marked the beginning of a new and beautiful chapter. Their families grew closer, forming a deep bond.

Then, an unexpected connection began to take shape.

Tom and Amanda’s mom, Christine, began emailing each other. Their friendship blossomed as their stages of grief overlapped, both understanding the unique loss of a spouse. 

Emails soon turned into hours upon hours of phone calls, and eventually, the two met in person in September 2000. That initial visit went very well, and three years later, Tom and Christine married, with Amanda and Allison standing beside them.

"While Allison and I miss our parents every single day I know we are both so thankful that God was able to rewrite a beautiful story despite great grief." – Amanda Jenkins

Today, Amanda (BS '99) and Allison (BBA '99) live about 30 miles apart and remain as close as ever. And now, the Baylor legacy they share is continuing.

Amanda’s daughter, Kaitlyn, is carrying on what she calls a “legacy four,” with both her parents and her aunt and uncle having attended Baylor in the late 1990s. She is set to graduate with the class of 2029.

Through the grief their families experienced, something beautiful grew — a lifelong friendship that became family, and a Baylor story that continues with the next generation.

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