Barbara Ferrell-Welch and Ida Watson-Freeman first met and became friends while both were living in Racine and working at InSinkErator.

"She was a beautiful person," Ferrell-Welch said of her friend. "I was upset when she had to move to Arkansas."

Even with some distance between them, the two women grew their friendship by sharing stories of each other's lives and families over the miles.

"She was someone who stood by you until she couldn't stand anymore," Ferrell-Welch said. "I learned to be stronger by knowing what she went through. She gave me the strength to endure."

What Watson-Freeman went through was a battle with breast cancer that she eventually lost. What Ferrell-Welch endured was her own fight against ovarian cancer - one she said that Watson-Freeman and her faith in God helped bring her through.

The story of these two women and the struggles, friendship and faith they shared, is the subject of a play that Ferrell-Welch wrote and will present at St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church's Miracle Center on Oct. 11. Called "Cancer: A Common Bond," it is meant to not only move the audience, but to inform them, Ferrell-Welch said.

Its message is about the need for people everywhere to pay attention to their health and to be there for each other in sickness, as well as in health.

"At (Ida's) funeral, all I could think about was how I wanted to tell the story of how she helped me," said Ferrell-Welch, who moved to Rockford, Ill., in 2005 after living 28 years in Racine.

Strong and faithful

When Ferrell-Welch was diagnosed with stage-three ovarian cancer soon after moving to Rockford, Watson-Freeman stepped up to the plate to support her friend, despite the fact that she had been battling her own illness for a couple of years at that point.

"When I called her to tell her about my cancer, we both cried," Ferrell-Welch said. "And then she told me, 'No, don't cry. You are going to be

all right.' "

Each time Ferrell-Welch had chemotherapy, she would get a call from her friend either before or after her appointment - sometimes both.

"She was a very encouraging person," Ferrell-Welch said. "She always stayed strong, and her faith in God was just astonishing,"

The experiences they shared because of their illnesses brought the two women even closer than they had been. And at one point along the way, Watson-Freeman suggested to her playwright friend that she write a story about cancer.

"Neither one of us thought it would be about us," Ferrell-Welch said. "But after her death, I realized that I wanted to keep her memory alive. God took one of us and left me behind to tell her story."

Despite her desire to do it, writing "Cancer: A Common Bond" was a difficult task for Ferrell-Welch, who has written and produced other plays about issues ranging from parent/child relationships to homelessness, some of which have been performed in Racine. She started working on it the week after Watson-Freeman's funeral, but found she had to walk away from the project now and then because of the emotions it evoked.

"Sometimes I'd put it down and not pick it up again until the middle of the night a week or two later," she said. "It is the hardest play I've ever written."

Once finished, Ferrell-Welch produced the play in Rockford last year, with a cast of nine including her daughter, Tifene Brown-Owens, and John Conley, both of Racine. The response was "awesome," the playwright said, and the production even inspired a couple audience members to go and get screened for various cancers.

Bringing it home

Some people from Racine who went to see the play in Rockford came back and told another of Ferrell-Welch's friends, Linda Anderson, about their experience. Their praise for the play convinced Anderson to bring "Cancer: A Common Bond" here.

As director of the Miracle Center at St. Paul Baptist Church, Anderson said she felt the show would not only be beneficial to members of the church, but the general public.

"We need something like this in the City of Racine," Anderson said. "So many people at our church, and other churches - and throughout the city - are having problems with cancer. Maybe if they see the play, it will inspire them."

While she hasn't yet seen "Cancer: A Common Bond," Anderson has experienced a few of Ferrell-Welch's other plays which she described as very moving.

"Anyone who goes to see her plays will be touched by them," she said. "Even if you don't have a similar situation in your own family, chances are you know someone who does."

Anderson said her desire to have "A Common Bond" performed at the Miracle Center is also her way of giving something back to Ferrell-Welch, who she says has given so much to so many others.

"She talks about how much (Watson-Freeman) was there for her, but she is also a very loving, caring person who has been there for a lot of people," Anderson said. "We all need to be there for each other."

If You Go

WHAT: "Cancer: A Common Bond," a play by Barbara Ferrell-Welch

WHEN: 6 p.m. Oct. 11

WHERE: St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church's Miracle Center, 1100 Grand Ave.

COST: Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door ($15/$20 for children) and are being sold at St. Paul Baptist Church, 1120 Grand Ave.

INFO: Call (262) 632-1467 or (262) 554-0818