Dealing With the Grief of Losing a Friend to AIDS?

Any of us who’ve witnessed the AIDS epidemic up close have lost friends to the disease, and some of us have wondered what to do with our grief. Writer Victoria Noe makes a valuable suggestion in her new book, Friend Grief and AIDS: Channel it into efforts to fight the disease and help those affected by it. “Give money, volunteer your time, educate yourself, spread the word to others,” writes Noe, a Chicagoan who has extensive experience fund-raising for AIDS service organizations. She reminds us that AIDS is still a big deal, and education, prevention, treatment, and related services still need support. That’s the best tribute to our friends, she says: “When the story of the AIDS epidemic is written (in the past tense) the underlying theme will be of friendship.… You don’t have to lay down your life for your friend—just give of yourself.” The book, the second in Noe’s Friend Grief series, is available as a paperback or e-book and at FriendGrief.com.