Some things never change in this ever-changing world, as four college girls have learned this summer. There’s always a silver lining.

(Left to right) Sophie Staller, Michelle Hamm, Shayna Silverman and Caroline Gutowski got to spend quality time together during this pandemic summer.

All four have spent many summers on Long Beach Island and met each other at Barnegat Light’s Lifeguard-in-Training program when they were tweens. As high school sports and college demands came into play, the “BL Squad,” as they call themselves, has not been able to see each other all together for more than a few days each summer, here or there, in a few years.