Dartmouth BFFs Make Tropical Virtual Appearance on ‘Hoda & Jenna’

Ever since the pandemic swept across the world and television shows switched over to a virtual audience, I've alway wondered how people were chosen to be a part of the Zoom broadcast.

On Monday, June 21 at around 11 a.m., I got my answer. Dartmouth locals and best friends Lindsey Ribbing and Erik Nelson were given the opportunity to represent the SouthCoast as one of the virtual squares on Today with Hoda & Jenna. The two friends have been loyal viewers of the show and enjoy watching it together.

Prior to Monday's show, Ribbing gave Nelson a surprise of his life when she signed him up for "best friends" edition of Hoda & Jenna.

"A couple of months ago I was watching Hoda & Jenna and I noticed they have a Best Friend Friday segment, and I thought it would be funny if I submitted Erik's name as a joke," Ribbing said. "I ended up forgetting about it and that's when the producer called me and said they picked Erik."

Nelson premiered on the show earlier this year in March.

Moving forward, the super fans of Hoda & Jenna received a call last week asking Ribbing and Nelson if they would like to join a "Summer Block Party" event that was aired this past Monday.

"We received a Zoom link in our email and they asked us to dress up as if we were getting ready for summer, so Erik and I did a tropical Hawaiian backdrop and sipped spirits out of a pineapple that we called a Hawaiian tropical breeze," Ribbing said.

Although they didn't get to communicate back and forth with Hoda and Jenna, they were still grateful to be a part of the virtual watch party.

The BFFs are currently getting ready for summer and Ribbing will be celebrating her rescheduled wedding (due to COVID-19) this Saturday. She plans on partying and spending time with her best friend, Nelson.