In a blog post on CalgarySun.com, Natalya commented on her friendship with Renee Young:
“Renee is one of my closest friends and she’s also someone I deeply respect and admire in and out of work, as when I first met her, we just clicked and were two blonde Canadian girls who loved ketchup chips and Tim Hortons. Renee is easy to be around and easy to talk to. We could talk about anything and everything at any time and at any place and that’s a big part of why we hit it off instantly. I loved walking into the locker room and seeing Renee in a colourful sequined blazer and sharing my latest favourite shoe find with her. I could vent to her about anything and she always listened with remarkable patience. After a fast-paced day at work, it was the best meeting up with her after and grabbing a good meal (had to be French fries!) and reflecting on our day. I especially loved it when we would room together and have two hours to sleep before we had to catch a flight. We knew we had to get to bed but we had lots of important stuff to talk about first.
Renee said, ‘out of everything that I’m proud of, looking back on my time at WWE, the thing that stands out most is that I got to be a part of the Women’s Evolution, our movement to put the women of WWE on equal footing with the men. This meant more time devoted to women’s storylines on TV, which resulted in more spots for women on the main roster. It meant a greater emphasis on in-ring work rate among the female wrestlers, which resulted in too many classic matches to mention. And I think it also ended up meaning a larger spotlight being shone on female roles throughout the company, which resulted in — well, some of the things that I got to do.’
I speak on behalf of the women in the WWE locker room by saying thank you so much, Renee, for being there for us. Helping us with promos, giving us trusted fashion advice, being a shoulder to lean on and helping us find our voices, too. Through thick and thin, you were there.”
