When my sister Laura was diagnosed with brain cancer, we all felt scared, concerned, and sad, but also powerless.  We all wanted to do something to help make things better and to make a difference.  Laura's website, which inspired the WhatFriendsDo website, became a way to make all of us feel better:  It became a real source of comfort through the great suggestions for fun things to do, and created a bond of all the people who knew Laura from school, family, work, church, the neighborhood, and even friends of friends.
 
It was a great comfort to our family to know that everybody was connected, and no one was left out of the loop, even when things seemed chaotic.  Our coordinating Angel became the information hub.  One of the effects of all that coordinating was the creation of the Lasagna Law.  Our Coordinating Angel made sure that people knew that Laura didn't eat red meat, and that some of the others in the house had food allergies.  She also made sure that Laura didn't wind up with day after day of lasagna -- or zucchini -- or whatever else was too much of a good thing.   She made sure all the help received was good and welcome help. 
 
WhatFriendsDo.com grew out of Laura's website.  While the outcome may not change, with humor, diplomacy, lots of communication and love, the journey can be made as memorable and positive as possible.  We lost Laura to cancer, but we - the members of Laura's Team - had the chance to love her as fully as possible along the way, and there are few regrets. 
 
You never miss what you haven't experienced.  Like indoor plumbing, for example -- once the idea has been planted, you don't want to go back. I can't imagine how we could have gotten through some of the tough days without the love, support and encouragement of Laura's Team.  These days it is such a nice thing to be able to check the WhatFriendsDo.com website for quotes that inspire me, or special cheer days to use as ideas for a care package for a far away friend.  And I love checking in just to know that others are out there being helped the way Laura was. 
 
Laura was always such a cheerful, generous and positive person.  She would be so pleased and proud to know that Fran, Stephanie and Aimee are continuing to help others in her honor as they did for her.  This "what friends do" idea made life so much more pleasant and even fun for Laura during her illness, and it is a wonderful legacy that the idea lives on to help others in the same way. 

 
Amy Rees