Laura Lee Better's Obituary
Laura Lee Podeszwa Better, a loving daughter, sister, aunt, wife, and—above all—mother,
passed away on Wednesday, June 3, 2026, at Frederick Health Hospital in Frederick, Maryland.
She had just turned 60.
Laura lived a life of extraordinary love, integrity, and courage. She was born May 18, 1966, at
Saint Peter’s Hospital in New Brunswick, New Jersey to the family that would bear the
longest-standing witness to her preternaturally kind, devoted, and self-sacrificing nature: her
parents Raymond and Teresa Cecilia Podeszwa, and her older sisters Tra Ce and Lisa. In 1986,
Laura earned an A.A.S. in Paralegal Technology from Brookdale Community College, in 1988,
her B.A. in Psychology from the University of Denver, and in 1991 her J.D. from Western New
England College School of Law. While putting herself through law school, she helped win a
landmark case outlawing the use of cruel psychological treatment protocols in
Massachusetts—a show of the extreme empathy that would manifest again and again
throughout her years. She met the love of her life, Warren Better, while caring for patients in
Taylor Manor psychiatric hospital in 1996. On Sunday, March 7, 1999, they married. Three years
later, on April 22, 2002, she gave birth to Shane Better, the son to whom she committed every
minute of the rest of her life.
The lionshare of Laura’s career was spent working for State Farm Insurance where, ultimately
rising to an executive level, she devoted her care to her colleagues and clients—extending
herself to ensure that each person her work touched was treated with dignity and fairness. For
over a decade, she also served as Adjunct Professor at Mount St. Mary’s University, where she
shared her knowledge teaching healthcare law, ethics, and administration. The work in which
she took the most pride, however, was her work that went unpaid. Laura pursued limitless
charitable ends throughout her life. Among those most dear to her were the counseling and
protection of abused children. And when she was ultimately diagnosed with breast cancer in
2012, rather than self-pity, she again displayed her characteristic kindness and self-sacrifice,
becoming a principal voice in Frederick’s cancer community. Leveraging her experience, she
taught seminars to other patients on how to finance their diseases, how to navigate insurance,
how to advocate for the quality of their care, and how to meet their families’ needs during their
diseases. She personally mentored countless others, connected even more to additional
resources, raised funds for research, and participated endlessly in community programming.
For 14 years, against every prognosis, she fought her disease with inimitable
courage—manufacturing miracles on a regular basis. Despite the extreme challenge and pain of
her illness, she lived happily and without complaint, continuing to devote herself to others and
laughing all the while. Each day she repeated her mantra: “The cancer does not win today, and
tomorrow doesn’t look good for it either!” Her positivity, optimism, and faith changed the course
of her life and the lives of those who were lucky enough to share in it. After 14 years, she was
proved correct. She passed away, but with no traceable cancer in her body.
Laura is survived by her mother Teresa, her husband Warren, her son Shane, her sisters Tra Ce
and Lisa, her nieces and nephews, and the many friends whose lives she brightened. She is
remembered for her sharp wit, moving humor, capacious sensitivity, kindness, devotion, andself-sacrifice. Not a person who met Laura left their meeting without feeling more capable, more
dignified, and more consequential. Another one of Laura’s favorite sayings was “everyone dies,
but not everyone truly lives.
” Laura truly lived. And she taught others to, too.
A Graveside service will be held at 11:00 AM on Tuesday, June 9th, at Resthaven Funeral Home,
9501 Catoctin Mountain Hwy, Frederick, MD 21774. In lieu of flowers, if so desired, donations
may be made in Laura’s memory to the American Cancer Society
What’s your fondest memory of Laura?
What’s a lesson you learned from Laura?
Share a story where Laura's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Laura you’ll never forget.
How did Laura make you smile?