CaringBridge, a site I hope you don’t need
My next column will feature a very good Web site that I hope you don't ever need to use. Chance are, though, you will, so remember this for when the time comes.
I've had the job of sharing important updates involving the medical condition of family members over the past several years. I have crafted ever-growing e-mail lists and encouraged others to share the messages with those in their circle of friends and families. CaringBridge.org replaces this system with a very thorough mini-Web site dedicated to the loved-one patient. It's a one-stop shop for Journal updates on the condition of the patient, a Guest Book for site visitors and information about the person's life.
It's all free and all very well done.
My column didn't have enough room to share everything I got from the site's founder, Sona Mehring of Eagan, Minn. I'm sharing here testimonials she's gotten over the years from users of CaringBridge:
and of course, e-mails filled with thanks and praise for CaringBridge
that arrive every day...here are just a few quick examples:
When you're fighting cancer, you can feel like you're in a bubble and
alone. Even when my body ached and I couldn't get out of bed, I could
still send something. The responses, the love from people, their prayers
kept me going and helped me realize that I wasn't isolated in this
bubble. - Amy Taylor, CaringBridge author, South Saint Paul, MN
I don't know personally how I could have gotten through this whole last
year and a half of my life without the tremendous support from everybody
on CaringBridge. - Lisa Foto, CaringBridge author, Mission Viejo, CA
I have worked in the critical care setting for almost 20 years as an ICU
nurse and never have I seen a more valuable tool for families than this
website. - Peggy Bach, NICU nurse
