Fearless. Loyal. Supportive. Kind. Compassionate. Advocate. Loving. Inclusive. Motivated. Deserving. Fighter of the good fight.

These are all things I can say about my friend Colleen. From the day I met her my freshman year at Belmont University, she proved to love me fiercely. It was recruitment week and I was still trying to find my place in college. I was majoring in art, which I had never done in high school (that’s a whole other story), and while I really loved the people I was meeting in art class, I felt there was a great group of friends out there that I hadn’t met yet. I was hesitant to join a sorority because, as my friends at Alabama and Auburn can attest to, it’s a completely different thing at a state school than it is at Belmont. No greek housing, no tailgating, no football, etc. But at Belmont, if you aren’t in music, it’s really hard to make friends. So I thought what the hell. I’ll see what it’s about. And I don’t know where I’d be today if I hadn’t taken that chance.

I never would have met this girl who sat in the parking lot of our apartment building with her arms around me when I got a phone call with bad news. There would have been fewer porch hangs in pajamas or runs to Wendy’s late at night after going out. With every bad relationship we learned from, or friendship that crumbled, she was there. She recruited me not just in the sisterhood of Alpha Sigma Tau, but as a friend for life.

Fast forward to ten years later. We’re both married and she’s expecting. You know the excitement that comes from each ultrasound but also the fear that is in the back of your mind that something could be wrong at any time? Colleen and Dan were told their son was showing signs of HLHS (Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome). This means that the left ventricle of his heart did not fully form. Read more