A Sister From Another Mother

Kathy Spirtes: 62, widowed, 1 child

Best friend of 33 years: Rosemary Kelso, married, died ... unknown causes, suspected suicide in 2009 at age 54

Canarsie Girls

Maxine Atkins: 73, widowed, 2 children

Best friend of 50 years: Anita Solomon, divorced, 1 child, died ... cancer at age 66

Laura Messina: 61, married

Best friend of 38 years: Susan Essex, married, 2 children, died ... breast cancer in 2005 at age 51

Katrin Sosnick: 46, married, 2 children

Best friend of 10 years: Meg Berté Owen, married, died ... lung infection brought on by treatments years before for Hodgkin's disease in 2000

BeaAnn Braun: 60, married, 2 children

Best friend of 40 years: Melanie Scott, divorced, died ... complications after emergency surgery for a bowel obstruction in 2012 at age 58

Mary Houde: 50, divorced, 2 children, school administrator and special education administrator

Best friend of 20 years: Wendy Schnurr, married, dietician, died ... complications from lung disease and transplant at age 48

Kim Tracy Prince: 44, married, 2 children, from Los Angeles, freelance writer

Best friend of 22 years: Lisa Kelly, neonatologist, died ... pulmonary embolism in 2011 at age 40

Susan Louer: 73, married, 3 children, from Brooklyn, retired teacher for the deaf

Best friend of 22 years: Carol Gohari, married, 1 child, science teacher and genealogist, died ... unknown causes

Lori Lippitz: 56, married, 1 child, founder of The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band and The Klezmer Music Foundation

Best friend of 3 years: Irina Geinisman, died ... murdered during a robbery in 1978 at age 16

Joan Lerman: 60, divorced, 3 children

Best friend of 20 years: Fran Goldenberg, 3 children, died ... from ovarian cancer