Leap to Confidence Class 116 Honors Joanne Froelich’s Legacy
Joanne Froelich had a caring heart, a fierce love of people, and an ability to positively influence others. Class 116 is being delivered in honor of Joanne. We thank Laura Froelich, Leap to Success Board Member, and her family for this beautiful tribute to her mother.
When Laura participated in Leap to Confidence in 2024, she created an affirmation: “I am a legend!” The statement stemmed from a conversation Laura had while working in leadership at Twitter. During a company-wide meeting, Laura walked up to a colleague and introduced herself. The gentleman smiled and said, “I know who you are! You are a legend here!”
That statement stayed with Laura because it was something her mother, Joanne Froelich, had a hand in. Joanne was proud of her daughter’s career that included eight years at Twitter and thirty in the media industry. Laura recalls her mother saying to her, “It’s amazing all that you’ve accomplished. I don’t know where you get it from!”
Laura smiled, knowing exactly where she got it from. Laura remembers her late mother, Joanne Froelich, as a leader in her own right–in the way that she carried herself and in the way she raised her children. Joanne was known for caring deeply about people. She found so much joy in caring for others. Her life’s work was her two children–a son and a daughter. She made a career of motherhood, which goes to show you don’t have to rule the business world to make a meaningful life.
In her inner circle, Joanne was the keeper of information–birthdays, anniversaries, etc. She was always checking in on people, asking how they were doing, especially her kids. When Laura was in a formal sales role, she thought about her mom all the time.
“I used to tell her that she missed her calling because she could convince anyone to do anything. The skills I was being taught in sales were skills my mom was good at, like listening and understanding what people needed and knowing how to help them get those things. She was also good at prioritizing what she needed and could convince others that that was what they needed to do as well.”
This was a good lesson in setting boundaries, because while she was busy caring for others at home and in her community, she was also taking care of herself. Joanne was a tutor in the learning center at an all-girls school in New York. Once upon a time, Hollywood leading lady Gwyneth Paltrow was one of her students. So many of Joanne’s traits, skills, and capabilities helped others be successful, including her daughter. She always encouraged Laura to aspire to great things. Then, she released her into the world, supporting her even when her daughter’s decisions weren’t what she wished for her.
“That was a gift because she knew that I needed to spread my wings and learn for myself,” Laura said. “She knew that I had the internal resources to figure things out.”
Growing up, Joanne and Laura had a good relationship, but there was always that natural mother-daughter tension. It usually had to do with appearance–the clothes Laura wore, her weight, or whether or not she was wearing make-up. But once Joanne was diagnosed with cancer, and Laura committed to spending as much time with her mom as possible, all that tension went away. Almost every time they spoke, Joanne would tell Laura (whether she was wearing make-up or not), “You are just so beautiful! I love you so much!”
“My mom made me a better human, the person I am today, someone who cares deeply for people,” Laura said. “Before she got sick, I often wondered, am I the kind of person who can take care of others the way I’ve seen her take care of people?”
Because Laura witnessed her mother’s goodness over the years, and she saw firsthand how well her mother cared for Laura’s grandfather towards the end of his life, it inspired her to be by her mother’s side towards the end of hers. Laura recalls holding her mother’s hand in the final days.
“She told me how much she loved me, and I told her how much I loved her,” Laura said. “I can still feel her hand in mine, and I can still hear her voice saying, ‘You are just so beautiful!’”
