Correspondent photo / Sean Barron Annette Kniseley of Warren, left, and Jennifer Hallden of Youngstown, hold a photograph of themselves taken about 25 years ago when they met each other in the Girard-based Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania program. The two women remain close friends.

YOUNGSTOWN — If you dissected Annette Kniseley’s young life mathematically, many of her good times would likely add up to — and have as a common denominator — time with Jennifer Hallden.

“I love her like she’s my sister,” Kniseley, 33, of Warren, said last week. “She helped me grow into the woman I am now.”

A positive path was laid for their relationship and enduring friendship soon after Kniseley and Hallden, 50, of Youngstown, met in the late 1990s through the Girard-based Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania program. Kniseley was 8 and, for a while after their initial meeting, very shy, Hallden remembered.

At the time, Kniseley, who provides babysitting services, was experiencing a variety of challenges in her young life, but, thanks to her “big sister’s” perseverance, guidance and kindness, she learned an array of important life skills. They included basic manners, proper ways to speak to others, how to keep the house clean and even paint her fingernails, said Kniseley, whose late grandmother, Rose Stimak, raised her, and with whom she had a close relationship.

“She taught me just to be a girl,” Kniseley said, referring to Hallden.

Those simple skills — combined with numerous outings and time spent with Hallden — paved the way for Kniseley, affectionately known as “Nene,” to graduate at age 22 from a Warren-based life skills program in 2014, find her own apartment and raise her son, Robert, 9, who often refers to Hallden as “Aunt Jen,” she said.

Hallden, who runs Ease into Balance, a Youngstown wellness center, said her underlying desire to be part of the BBBS program was community outreach. She had no children of her own, but wanted to make a difference in another person’s life, Hallden added.

Soon after meeting her highly shy “little sister,” the two of them took a walk around Kniseley’s block, then they often patronized an area McDonald’s restaurant, where the child took a liking to plain burgers, Hallden recalled. In an effort to help reduce Kniseley’s introversion and timidity, Hallden tried simply to be in the moment with her “sister” to help her feel more at ease.

Over time, their activities together saw more variance and included seeing movies, visiting Hallden’s parents’ Hubbard home and playing with the animals there, roller skating and trips to Pioneer Waterland & Dry Fun Park in Chardon, Hallden said. She added that they also took a family vacation to Virginia Beach, Virginia.

In addition, Hallden and Kniseley spent time together at the Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown, as well as on walks around the Lily Pond in Mill Creek Park, at Hallden’s parents’ home for her mother’s spaghetti dinners and on a trip to an Akron dinner theater to see its production of “Singin’ in the Rain.” At age 12, Kniseley was among the 12 people who attended her “big sister’s” wedding, Hallden said.

Their relationship also carried over into Kniseley’s school life, because Hallden often attended parent-teacher conferences, along with her “little sister’s” eighth-grade dance at East Middle School, Hallden recalled.

To help her “little sister” overcome her math struggles, Hallden often took Kniseley grocery shopping so she would become more adept at budgeting and managing money.

Hallden also served BBBS as a board member before she moved to the Phoenix area in 2006. For some time, the two of them remained in touch periodically, then Hallden returned to the Mahoning Valley in February 2022. The two didn’t miss a beat.

“I tell people, ‘She’s my little sister, not my younger sister,'” Hallden said.

Now that Kniseley has entered motherhood with the responsibilities that come with raising a young son, Hallden had nothing but praise for the job she’s doing on that front.

“She’s a phenomenal mother. It’s not just me; anyone who sees her with him says she’s an exceptional mother,” Hallden said, adding that her “little sister” also has become close with Hallden’s partner, Derek Vanover.

“He’s very supportive (of our friendship),” she added.

In a sense, Hallden and Kniseley’s 25-year relationship has come full circle, having started as merely spending time together in the moment to enjoying often being together as close adult friends today.

“I want to be a touchstone for Annette,” Hallden said, adding that she intends to continue to provide support and encouragement for her.

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