The Valerie's

Since being home in CA I've been able to see a lot of friends. A couple of weekends ago Sophia and I had lunch with Valerie. We go way back (about 16 years). It all started back at UCLA Hospital peds floor with two very ill girls. Our mothers met and found out they both had daughters named Valerie. I was being discharged and leaving my room. I had a sign that said "Get Well Valerie". We decided it should be passed on to the other Valerie.
A couple months later we met face to face at a Teen Impact Weekend Retreat and figured out that we had been in the hospital at the same time and I was the one that had given her the sign. We instantly became friends and have been ever since. Through the name connection and sharing very similar trials of enduring life threatening illness together we became close.
We didn't know that our first weekend retreat would be the first of many retreats and camps to come. We have so many great memories of the yearly retreats to the beach and Disneyland! Attending winter and summer camps at Camp Ronald McDonald together was a blast. Valerie has been such a special friend in my life. I feel so blessed to have met her and that we have both survived!