When they were roommates Ashley Bolding and Suezy Keller decided to cook a turkey together in their campus apartment. It was the Saturday before Thanksgiving break in 2005, the fall of their senior year. Neither had ever cooked one before, at least not without a lot of parental supervision, Keller said.

Undeterred, they invited friends and neighbors over and about a dozen students showed up, bringing with them side dishes, and lugging chairs for extra seating in the small University Forest apartment. The roommates hosted a real dinner party for the first time.

“Before that, I think the kitchen was mostly used for quesadillas and soup,” Bolding said, with a laugh.

“I believe there was conversation on whether or not the oven in the apartment could actually cook a turkey,” Keller said.

The turkey came out perfectly roasted. The group had so much fun they decided to do it again and have kept it up ever since. This Thanksgiving will mark the 20th anniversary of the get-together.

“It just felt natural to continue,” said Keller.

Proximity wasn’t a concern since so many of their close friends from college all moved to D.C. around the same time. Many, like Keller and Bolding, continued to live together.

“We really did start thinking of ourselves as a family, that early on,” Bolding said.

Thus, “Thanksgiving With Friends,” or TWF for short, is always held the Saturday before Thanksgiving — before people gather with their own families.

Andrew Velde gives the toast at dinner, recapping the year’s major celebrations, while David Bates provides the blessing. Ruthie Galvin brings a wonderful strawberry salad. All three are 2006 alums. The group enjoys rehashing old stories from their college and D.C. days.

Every year, they take a group photo. The venues have changed. Suezy (Vaughan) and her husband Drew Keller, a 2005 alum, have been hosting the event in their Northern Virginia home in recent years.

Bolding moved to New York six years ago but has never missed a beat with TWF. Others have come from Richmond and Charlottesville, Virginia, as well as Philadelphia, San Francisco, Baltimore, Charlotte, and Plantation, Florida. During the pandemic, they held the event virtually.

“People certainly travel and make a weekend of it a lot of times, which is nice,” Bolding said. While they frequently met up at weddings in their younger years, now TWF is the main event that brings them all back together.

The ex-roommates expect a big turnout for the 20th anniversary, with the return of some who haven’t been able to attend for a few years.

“We're very lucky to have a friend group where, if you haven't seen each other for four or five years, you can just pick up where you left off. And I think that's something that's so much a signature at the University of Richmond,” Keller said. ”As a close-knit campus, it just breeds these groups of friends who graduate with unbreakable bonds.”

This year, 49 adults and two dozen kids are expected to the event. Bolding is coming in early to help Keller decorate and prepare dinner.

As they’ve gotten older, Keller said, the event has evolved and grown more meaningful as their families expand, bringing in a second generation of Spiders. Where once dinner started at eight and lingered until the wee hours, the new iteration begins at 4 p.m.

“It’s more family-friendly. The timing has evolved, the wine has gotten better, and the friends have all gotten closer,” Keller said. “And yes, there’s more room in the kitchen.”