VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT

LANA JUEDEMANN

How long have you been volunteering with Friends, and how did you get involved?

I have been volunteering since the summer of 2019. I recently retired and wanted to offer my services to Friends because my nephew, Adam Behrhorst, and his entire family had received benefits and support from Friends while he was fighting Ewing’s Sarcoma during his senior year of high school. Sadly, Adam did not survive. I was moved by the efforts this organization made in helping these young cancer patients and their families deal with so many aspects of this awful disease.

What does volunteering mean to you?

Being able to give back to the organization that provided support to my nephew has been very rewarding. Volunteering with Friends has allowed me to offer my accounting and administrative related skills, but I’ve also enjoyed shopping for toys, food & gift cards, delivering snacks and toys to the various treatment centers and setting up and participating at events. With each activity, I can see how the goal of the organization is to provide, at a minimum, a moment of grace to the patient and their families as they deal with the hardships of a child fighting cancer.

What is your favorite Friends activity or event?

My favorite Friends activity is working with the wonderful group of fulltime employees of the organization as well as the other volunteers.

friends, and volunteering with Friends.