WhatFriendsDo Channels Good Intentions Into Real-World Action to Help Friends in Need

INDIANAPOLIS, Dec. 16, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- When a loved one is going through a life-changing event like a health crisis, friends, extended family and colleagues want to help but often don't know how. WhatFriendsDo, a new online platform, harnesses the power of that instinct to help and convert it into meaningful action. The platform gives friends an easy way to coordinate support and maintain connections with a loved one or family experiencing a life-changing event.

"When a loved one is injured, ill or going through a seriously disruptive event, sometimes we feel helpless because we don't know what to do," says Aimee Kandrac, the company's founder and CEO. "WhatFriendsDo is like that super-organized sister or friend who coordinates the group response, assessing what's needed, defining ways people can help, organizing support and keeping everyone informed and updated so that they get involved early and stay engaged every step of the way — because that's what friends do."

Kandrac and her core team were inspired to create the WhatFriendsDo platform after they banded together to help a close friend with a devastating cancer diagnosis. The experience of rallying around their friend and working together to deliver meals, provide family support, take care of chores, etc., showed them the power of a collective purpose — and the need for a single organizing space that combines functions like scheduling, fundraising and communication.

"There are calendar platforms, fundraising sites, blogging spaces and other component pieces out there, but WhatFriendsDo brings it all together," Kandrac observes. "We have a calendar function to organize tasks, a help registry the person in need or advocate can use to make sure gifts are really useful, a donations page, a blog with photo and video functions to keep everyone up to date, a team gear section so people can show their support and a note feature so friends can express their love directly and in a non-intrusive way. One platform does it all."

The WhatFriendsDo site also features daily tips and a personal concierge service to provide expertise to those going through an event and the people who want to help them in a meaningful way. Before the platform's official launch in December 2015, the WhatFriendsDo team worked with a large Midwestern healthcare system to offer the platform as a resource to patients and their families, gaining tens of thousands of enthusiastic users nationwide. This soft launch showed the WhatFriendsDo team the power of their platform.

"We heard incredibly heartwarming stories about how people used WhatFriendsDo to show their support," Kandrac says. "The friends of one woman who was dealing with a breast cancer diagnosis got together when their friend was out and hid 'angel' notes with words of encouragement and love all over her house. Another team whose friend was keeping vigil over a child in an isolation unit at the hospital bought a charm bracelet for their friend, with each group member contributing a single charm that had personal meaning for the mother to lift her spirits and let her know they were all thinking of her. The list goes on."

Building a connected team to help a friend in need is simple on WhatFriendsDo, and the platform makes it easy for people who want to help to find an existing team and provide meaningful assistance. The platform is also available as a branded service for partner organizations like healthcare facilities, faith communities, HR departments and nonprofits.

Research shows that people who have a strong social support network tend to recover quickly and have lower hospital readmission rates, making sense for organizations to provide a platform that facilitates care from friends and family. WhatFriendsDo makes it easy.

WhatFriendsDo is available now for people who want to start and organize a team to help a loved one through a life-changing event. To find out more, please visit WhatFriendsDo.

About WhatFriendsDo
WhatFriendsDo is an online platform that empowers friends to help loved ones in need. When an event like a health crisis occurs, people experiencing the crisis often feel overwhelmed and alone, and the friends and extended family members who love them want to help but frequently don't know how. WhatFriendsDo channels caring into concrete action, enabling friends to organize meal delivery, household chores, childcare, transportation needs, fundraising activities and more on a single, simple-to-use platform — and keep everyone involved and updated along the way. A woman-owned business, WhatFriendsDo is the perfect solution for caring friends and organizations that provide physical, spiritual and emotional support. Learn more at WhatFriendsDo.

SOURCE WhatFriendsDo

Related Links

http://www.whatfriendsdo.com