Laura Wade | Special to The Botetourt View

These family members are friends, too: sisters Jamie Wagner (from left) and Lisa Krepps with mom Cindy Finch and brother Tommy Finch.

Births. Illnesses. Deaths. Graduations. Celebrations. Business ventures. Travel adventures. This family has been through it all, and through it all, they've been friends.

Cindy Finch feels fortunate that her three grown children, Lisa Krepps, Tommy Finch and Jamie Wagner, are also her best friends. "All mothers love their children," she says, "and I truly like my children. I try to think of things to involve all of us."

So one Christmas, everyone got skate shoes to roll downtown together. Another year, they all got bikes. The family enjoys having fun and being adventurous together. Their adventures have included snowboarding and traveling to New York City and Europe.

Finch says she and her family have always played and worked together. Even chores were made fun when the children were growing up. As adults, they have all worked at Finch's Daleville boutique, Three Graces. It allowed them to create something together while Krepps and Wagner attended school and raised their young children. Now, Krepps teaches elementary school, and Wagner and Tommy Finch are both in the nursing profession.

They all agree that taking risks and trying new things is easier because they have one another for encouragement. It helps knowing that no matter what happens, they will be accepted and loved.

"My family members are my best friends," Tommy Finch shares. "They provide an unconditional support system."

"I think the reason we are all friends is because Mom and Dad encouraged us to be who we are, and to follow our dreams," Wagner adds.

"My husband is truly a very big part of our friendship. Because of his hard work and openness, we've had some fun journeys. He is my number one friend, and an amazing man," Cindy Finch said of her husband, Bo Finch.

Even when the three children lived in different parts of the country, they stayed connected with phone calls and visits. They all gathered for the birth of Wagner's first child in Portland, Ore. After starting their families, Wagner and Krepps moved back to Botetourt with their husbands, and they have enjoyed raising their children with each other's support and advice.

"We're so fortunate to have support, especially as parents," Krepps says. "It was an easy decision to move back when I became a parent."

The family has experienced difficult times, too, including weathering floods and hurricanes, and losing a house to fire. Finch survived breast cancer with her children and husband rallied around her.

"We truly are buddies. The good, the bad, and the ugly. No matter how difficult it gets, we're there for each other," Cindy Finch says.

Sharing friendship and a family bond means they really feel one another's happiness and pain. That deep connection is a huge source of strength for this family. They know they are never alone because they have their family, their friends.