My friend Mali New (now Labkowski) has been one of the most unconditionally loving, caring, and supportive people I’ve been honored to know.
There’s all the usual friendship stuff–she is respectful, playful, fun, kind, caring, remembered birthdays and big life events, always cheering me on and listening to me and laughing along.

But there are the things that go beyond normal friendship and that show a level of care and love that surpass the usual.

There was the time when Mali, worried about my unhealthy eating habits, showed up in school with a tub of homemade, healthy version of Nutella spread, because she knew that’s what I had for lunch and wanted to show me there were healthy alternatives to my favorite sugar-laden treats (she accidentally made it with chestnuts, and it took us a while to figure out why it had a funky flavor, but hey, at least we got a laugh).

She taught me how to draw and channel my inner artist, how to tap into my inner musical ear and let my creative side roam free. An accomplished pianist and Artist, Mali always encouraged me to tap into my natural talents and leave my shyness and insecurity at the door. She’s always been so much more talented than me, but treated me like an equal, taking the time to give serious, thoughtful feedback and constructive criticism to help improve my technique, even though she was always lightyears ahead.

Whatever I need her for, Mali is there, and she sees every job through the end, including the annoying bits. She perseveres even when things get hard and boring. When we ran our school newspaper together, Mali taught me discipline, perseverance, and attention to detail. When I announced something “good enough,” arguing that no one would care about the little details, Mali patiently showed me why excellence matters.

Ever curious and ever fascinated by the life swirling around her, she constantly invited me to cultural events across the city, teaching me about music, art, and humanity. If I had a question and she didn’t know the answer, she would look it up and come back to me to have a thoughtful discussion about the topic at hand, and we’d learn about it together.

Later on, in high school, when I was going through a hard time with some things, Mali would pick me up in her parent’s car, take me to the waterfront, and we’d sit and talk for hours over ice cream, with me doing much of the talking (Mali is the most attentive listener) while Mali offered insight and wisdom beyond her years.

Mali’s always been a doer, not a talker, and I would always randomly discover that she had volunteered, helped, assisted, or gotten involved in some mitzvah or another without mentioning it to anyone. So many times she would drive out of her way, walk out of her way, or take initiative to do little (or big) things to help me out. Her thoughtfulness, kindness, and caring make her stand out.

I could go on an on, but her encouragement, support, wisdom, and caring, generous nature (among so many other wonderful things) have impacted my life in so many ways.