This was a story written and printed in our local newspaper for Matt by his best friend, Ellie Malfaro. When you find a loyal friend, you have a true treasure. Matt Drager and I became best friends in May, after I spent the day in the hospital with him while he visited his father, Bob, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2006. After that, Matt and I talked every day, and I mean every day. Our streak so far is 84 days of constant contact. Matt's Dad was able to come home and things were going fine as the summer went on. I had gone away for a week and was able to keep in contact with Matt; I was planning on going to camp in Altoona feeling confident that things would be fine when I returned. Four days before I left, Matt's Dad was back in the hospital and the cancer had spread. I spent as much time as I could with Matt and his family in the hospital, but when the time came for me to go to camp, I asked Matt if I should go or not. His response was, "I'm not selfish enough to ask you to stay". I left for camp that Friday. We talked every night, until Tuesday, I received a text from Matt telling me his father had passed away. The feeling of guilt was so sickening, I had left my best friend in a time of need. He told me he expected me to be at the funeral, and I called my Mom to be sure I would be home. Matt was pretty calm, but I was a mess. I felt like I had abandoned the one person who had never abandoned me. I couldn't make up for the four days that were lost while I was at camp. Since then, I've spent a lot of time trying to offset the hurt I caused by being away and having fun at camp, while my best friend had to deal with his father's death alone. Things will get better in time, but for now, I owe a lot to Matt. The fact that our friendship is still as solid as it had been before I left for camp is due to the loyalty of my best friend. Written by: Ellie Malfaro