Megan Lewis, 38, and Suzanne Pugh, 47, were connected in an unexpected and inspiring manner. Their friendship story began when they were kids as pen pals. The two women corresponded by letter from 1994 to 1995. Their paths reconnected when Lewis was visiting her parents’ house over Thanksgiving. In sorting through her childhood memorabilia, she found these letters she had sent to Pugh. These treasures came from her time in second grade at Fern Hill Elementary School.
Pugh, then an 11th grader at West Chester East High School, recalled happy memories of their back and forth. The letters dug up their mutual proclivities, not the least of which was their mutual love of gymnastics. They pointed to Lewis’s visit to Pugh’s school. This colorful and nostalgic find ignited a brief conversation that led to a truly amazing realization.
In December 2025, Lewis and Pugh reconnected after several years of not knowing they were linked. Their journeys intersected once more in 2018, when Lewis, pregnant with her first baby, started to see Pugh as her OB-GYN. Pugh attended the births of both of Lewis’s kids—Caroline and Jack—furthering the special connection between the two women.
Pugh said, “It’s amazing that we didn’t recall being pen pals! Megan is an extraordinary patient and individual, and it’s amazing to know that we were linked 30 years ago!
Here, Lewis explains how she found the letters and the impetus behind the project, reflecting on her own upbringing in the process. I was reading through the letters just thinking to myself, ‘Who is this?’” she said. In doing so the letters created a surprising bond between their former and current lives.
Time travel would be pretty useful right now, because if I could, I would give my 7-year-old self some amazing news. The pen pal I would be destined to write would one day care for me through my pregnancies and deliver all three of my children! And that’s why I feel like it’s the most amazing bond between her and I that we both have,” Lewis said.
Pugh stated that she was as surprised by the find as anyone. “I had no recollection of this. Her mother presented her with a box of letters and archival papers and other artifacts from her elementary school years. Once inside the box, she discovered the letters I sent her. She texted me photos of the letters and sure enough it was me! Ain’t this a wonderful wild tiny world,” she said.
Their reunion has done even more than just fan the embers of their teenage love—it’s brought the men closer together as friends. Lewis considers Pugh an “intimate friend,” who saved her life with crucial support when Lewis was pregnant. I struggled a lot prior to getting pregnant with my daughter. Dr. Pugh was so helpful and supportive throughout my pregnancy with Caroline, and then when I had my son Jack,” Lewis said. “She went the extra mile, ensuring that she was the physician on call to deliver my babies.
The emotional journey of rediscovery has brought joy to both women, who now reflect on their childhood friendship with newfound appreciation. What started as a bond through wholesome correspondence has grown into a deep friendship that remains strong even as the two entered adulthood.
