Feldman and Canedo? ‘Two peas in a pod’

Brittany Feldman (left) and Kayla Canedo as toddlers. The two grew up together in north Fulton County. Feldman used this photo as her cover photo on Facebook. Her page was changed after their death to “Remembering Brittany Feldman.” Canedo’s page was also changed to “Remembering Kayla Canedo.” (Family photo)

Brittany Feldman (left) and Kayla Canedo as toddlers. The two grew up together in north Fulton County. Feldman used this photo as her cover photo on Facebook. Her page was changed after their death to “Remembering Brittany Feldman.” Canedo’s page was also changed to “Remembering Kayla Canedo.” (Family photo)

There is only one public video on Brittany Feldman’s Facebook page. And it represents a constant in her life.

In the 92-second video posted on Jan. 16, Feldman and Kayla Canedo are seated at a piano.

Both playing and sharing in the beautiful medley.

It has been that way since they were children growing up in Alpharetta.

Both of their pages are filled with photos of each other. At University of Georgia football games. At their Milton High School graduation. Just goofing around.

Feldman’s cover photo is the two of them as toddlers.

“It was very common to see both the girls together,” said Drew Hullinger, who had known the two for about five years. “The first thing you notice about them is that their smiles were contagious. They were always smiling. They could light up any room. They were strong, independent, mature women for their ages.”

Best friends since they were little kids, Feldman and Canedo even lived together as freshman, friends say. Despite people telling them it would hurt their friendship.

It didn’t.

On Wednesday, the two lifelong friends died in a car crash that killed two other University of Georgia co-eds and left another in critical condition. Investigators believe the five women were traveling northbound on Ga. 15 in Watkinsville, toward the UGA campus.

Feldman was a 20-year-old sophomore and a member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority at UGA. According to the Red & Black, she majored in communication sciences and disorders.

Canedo, a 19-year-old sophomore psychology major, was the vice president of chapter relations and standards for Alpha Chi Omega sorority at UGA.

On Thursday morning, as the shock of Feldman’s and Canedo’s deaths ripped through the UGA campus, it also touched what would have been their summer jobs. In June, just as they had done for the past four summers, the two were scheduled to work at the YMCA Camp High Harbour at Lake Lake Allatoona.

Having breezed through the leadership training program during the previous summers, they were going to be program directors this season. Ken O’Kelley, vice president of camps and services for the YMCA of Metro Atlanta, said the two were head counselors last year before the promotions.

“They were beautiful inside and out. Very energetic and they loved camp,” O’Kelley said. “They did well at camp because they had a desire to help and teach kids.”

Sydney Weaver, 19, of Alpharetta was a camping buddy of Feldman and Canedo for six years. She met them when she was 13 and stayed friends with them even after she went away to the University of Tennessee.

She said Feldman “had a big smile that she easily spread to others.”

Canedo, she said, was “the funniest girl I ever met.”

Then Weaver began to cry and couldn’t talk anymore.

Alyssa Achirom was also part of the camp bunch that spent summers boating and water-skiing.

The 19-year-old from Sandy Springs said she often didn’t fit in as a Jewish girl among so many Christians. Feldman and Canedo, however, made her feel comfortable.

“They always had kind thoughts,” Achirom said.

On Feb. 21, Feldman posted a message on her Facebook page announcing that she was trying to raise $800 for the camp, the amount it costs one child to attend.

“Camp is where I have learned to be the absolute best version of myself and helped others to do the same. I have watched every kid that leaves our gates at the end of their time at camp leave with incredible confidence within themselves, a strong desire to serve others, and an overwhelming amount of love for God,” Feldman wrote. “Every child deserves this opportunity to experience a summer that will allow them to meet their best friends, learn to become servant leaders, and know the person and character of Jesus Christ.”

O’Kelley said the YMCA’s senior staff addressed the passing of the two women as soon as the news was confirmed. It was a rough morning.

“The first thing we did was had a prayer for them and a prayer for their families,” O’Kelley said. “Talk about taking the wind out your sails.”

Hullinger, the executive director of Camp High Harbour, said the staff is now preparing for the summer while missing its “two peas in a pod.”

“It was shocking. My heart just sank when I heard,” Hullinger said. “They were way too young, way too impactful, and way too loved by too many people. We’ve lost a camp family. But their families have lost daughters.”