SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Stacee Etcheber was the mama of her crue, spelled c-r-u-e as in Motley.
VIDEO: 'I got you' Stacee Etcheber's 'crue' remembers unforgettable friendship
"That was just her, she was the mama, always and I don't know, I don't know what I'm gonna do, I don't know what I'm gonna do," said friend Stacy Reno.
Etcheber's best friends say they have no doubt she gave her life to save someone else's.
"Whether she was shielding someone, a young person, someone in need, carrying someone on her back no doubt she would have done it," said friend Joan Busby.
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She loved fiercely, especially her children 10-year-old Vinnie and 12-year-old Alivia.
"Every time the phone rang they jumped, 'Is that my daddy did he find my mommy,' There was many of those leading up to the final phone call," said Reno.
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The outpouring of support for the children and Stacee's husband San Francisco Police Officer Vinnie Etcheber has been tremendous including at a candlelight vigil held earlier this week.
"Now I find myself thinking to myself, we got you, cause she said it every day to one of us at least, don't worry, I got you, I got you," said Busby.
The 'crue' now wears Stacee over their hearts. A friend had buttons made with her picture.
"Yeah, right where she should be," said Reno tearfully.
It can be rare to develop unbreakable friendships later in life.
VIDEO: Family says Staycee Etcheber's spirit will be missed dearly
"I just found a kindred spirit in her," said friend Roxanne Davis.
"As I've gotten older I realize it's not just a friendship it's a relationship," said Reno.
But with the right spirit at the helm, relationship goals like these seem more attainable.
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