They met on vacation and became best friends. Then they recreated their favorite photo 30 years later

CNN — Friends Scott Behringer, George Gilbert and Tim Korber always refer to the 1994 beach picture of the three of them in Cabo San Lucas as their “iconic photo.”

In the shot, the trio are standing side-by-side, arms crossed and baseball hats facing backward, their colorful swim shorts and bright-colored tops emblematic of the early ‘90s.

Travel is a big part of their lives — in fact, the three couples met each other and became friends on vacation.

First, California-based doctors Tim and Patty befriended fellow twentysomething Americans Scott and Cheree while in Cancun, Mexico in the summer of 1986. The foursome went from strangers to pals right away (“We just had this instant bond,” is how Patty puts it). They spent the rest of their Cancun vacation as a quartet and immediately started planning future travels.

Cut to a couple of years later: Tim, Patty, Scott and Cheree were on an airplane embarking on a new adventure when they got chatting to another young American couple, George and Debbie. More adventures followed as a group of six.

By coincidence, all three of the couples were from California. When they weren’t traveling, they were there for each other in their day-to-day lives, offering support, a shared sense of humor, and a persisting loyalty.

Over the decades, the group went from strangers who met on vacation, to each other’s go-to traveling buddies and closest friends.

“We have traveled all over the world together,” Tim tells CNN Travel.

“It’s a chosen family,” says Cheree.

 

The ‘iconic photo’

Over the years, the 1994 Cabo beach photo became symbolic of Tim, Scott, George, Debbie, Cheree and Patty’s enduring friendship.

There’s just something about the photo — the sandy beach paradise setting, the early 1990s vibes, the three guys “clowning around.”

“We’re like brothers,” says George, who thinks the photo illustrates that close bond.

“It was Scott that pulled it out of the pile of all the pictures and had it blown up and put on his desk, and said, ‘This is just such a cool photo of the three of us,’” recalls Tim.

On subsequent vacations, the three friends often recreated the arms crossed, backward-baseball-cap pose.

“They could pretty much just spontaneously recreate it at any moment,” says Patty, laughing, adding that she, Cheree and Debbie often join in too.

Then, in late 2024, the opportunity finally presented itself to “officially” recreate the beloved photo: Debbie and George’s son was getting married in Cabo — in the same area where his parents had vacationed with the Korbers and the Behringers years before.

“So we said, ‘We’re going to recreate the pose and try to bring clothing to match the 1990s,’” recalls Tim.

The friends only finalized the plan about a week ahead of the wedding, which didn’t leave long to prepare.

“The guys were like, ‘Let’s grow a goatee,’” recalls Tim — in the original photo, they’ve all got matching facial hair. “And I’m like, ‘Guys, you needed to give me six months in advance to try to grow it, there’s no way I’m going to be able to do it in less than a week.’”

 

While Tim turned up goatee-less, he did fish out a ‘90s belt bag, bright-colored swim trunks and a tank top, replicating the vacation get-up of his younger self.

Scott and George also searched their closets for their best ‘90s-coded clothing items, stuffing them in their luggage alongside more wedding-appropriate shirts and jackets.

Once in Cabo San Lucas, Tim, Scott and George headed straight to the beach. Patty was on camera duty, while Cheree and Debbie helped find the exact spot where their original photo was taken.

After walking up and down the beach a few times, the friends eventually tracked down the right location.

“They’re standing in the same spot, but the background is a little bit different because there was a hurricane in between the two photos,” says Patty. “The hurricane wiped out all the palapas that were in the background of the first picture.”

Location secured, Patty helped her husband and his two friends get into position. Cheree and Debbie assisted with comparing the original and the recreation, aiming to get all the details as close as possible.

While they were posing, George’s son — the groom-to-be — was also down on the beach, sunbathing with friends. He spotted his father and his best pals in their ‘90s get-ups and quizzed them on what was going on.

“We told him the history behind it,” says George. “Then, before they left Cabo, he and his two best friends, they all did the same pose, and they’re going to carry that forward in their friendship, doing that same pose. So it’s become kind of an iconic pose for not just our generation, but for our future generations.”

“We copyrighted it,” jokes Tim. “So they’ll have to pay us royalties.”

Adventuring together

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They met on vacation over 30 years ago. Then they became best friends

When Tim, George, Scott, Patty, Debbie and Cheree saw the original photo and the recreation side-by-side they felt proud.

Not just of their expert photo recreation. It was also a moment for the six friends to reflect on their enduring friendship.

“The odds of this happening and becoming lifelong friends, I would say it’s one in 10 million,” says George. “Meeting someone on a plane, bonding, and raising families all at the same time and everything like that…”

In the decades since they crossed paths on vacation, the friends have been part of each other’s weddings. They’re godparents to each other’s kids. They’ve watched each other go through career ups and downs, personal highs and personal lows. They’ve celebrated milestone birthdays. Over the years, their children grew up together. They’re now proud grandparents.

“It takes a village to raise good kids,” says Cheree. “Anytime my daughter needs some extra advice, she calls Patty or Debbie.”

“We’ve had that whole journey together,” reflects Patty.

“When something occurs, or you look for advice, I look to this group before I actually look to my family. It’s that close,” says Scott.

The three couples still regularly vacation together, and Cabo remains a go-to favorite spot. They loved returning there recently for George and Debbie’s son’s wedding.

“It’s where we became friends,” says Debbie, who says it’s a destination full of “special memories.”

 

The six friends have also enjoyed other adventures. They’ve skied in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains, snorkeled in Hawaii and most recently embarked on an “incredible” South African safari.

They’ve made many memories along the way and shared many laughs — during their CNN Travel interview, the six descend into fits of laughter when they recall the time they shared a tiny houseboat which accidentally slipped its mooring.

“You’ve got to have a good sense of humor, especially when houseboats break loose in the middle of the night,” points out Cheree.

“We definitely share a sense of humor,” says Patty, who adds that “Tim doesn’t have an off switch, he’s always on and funny, and Scott and George are right there behind him.”

Their travels as a six often involve sports and getting outdoors, something they all enjoy.

“We all love to snorkel,” says Patty. “We all started skiing, tennis… we all golf. There were a lot of activities that we all gravitated to and we have that same degree of adventure.”

As well as shared hobbies, Patty suggests “patience” is an important part of their long-lasting friendship. Debbie and Cheree also credit Patty’s faithfulness and loyalty.

“She puts our friendship first,” is how Debbie puts it, adding that “there isn’t a week that goes by that she hasn’t made some kind of contact with us.”

In recent years, the friends have also been each other’s rocks as they care for their elderly parents.

“We’re always trying to get advice from each other on handling different things that pertain to them, and that helps so much,” says Cheree. “We’re always talking and comparing notes — and helping each other with our kids and our grandkids.”

‘Lifelong friends’

Today, the six friends are planning future adventures, hoping for future opportunities to recreate the “iconic pose.”

They’ve always been grateful that travel brought them together, but as they get older, the friends feel that gratitude even more acutely.

“We’re lucky,” says Tim, “It’s hard to find lifelong friends like this.”

“I would use the word blessed,” says George. “I go back to the odds of finding people like this on a trip, on a vacation, and to where we are today… We sound like a big family, and I don’t think many people have the opportunity to get that in their lifetime. I think we’re all blessed.”