A young woman's love for animals provided a needed boost to a local animal shelter.

One of life's grim realities is that bad things happen, and people have to live with them.

But the friends of Ashley Ames wanted to do more than remember her. They wanted to show their appreciation for her life in a way that their friend would have approved, and they were able to achieve their goal.

Ames was a 23-year-old Urbana resident who worked at Timpone's restaurant in Urbana and planned to attend Parkland College. But she never got that chance.

Her residence on 814 W. Stoughton St., U, was the site of a May 28, 2010, fire, and Ames suffered serious burns and injury from smoke inhalation. Other residents of the building got out in time because a University of Illinois police officer who happened to be driving by entered the burning building to get them out.

Ames fought for life at the burn unit at Memorial Hospital in Springfield before succumbing to her injuries on July 6, 2010.

A group of Ames' friends raised money to help pay her medical bills. When they learned they had money left over, they recalled Ames' love for animals and contacted the Champaign County Humane Society to see if they could make a gift in her memory.

By coincidence of timing, the humane society was in the midst of a fundraising campaign to raise $45,000 for a new roof for the shelter. The roof includes sun-tunnels, which are similar to sky lights, to provide natural light to areas of the building where animals are held.

Thanks to the $18,799 donated in Ames' memory, the humane society was able to complete the roof project.

Humane society executive director Mary Tiefenbrunn said her organization was honored to play a role in advancing Ames' memory and that she hopes Ames' friends would find "solace in knowing that every day ... a ray of sunlight is shining down on a shelter cat or dog because of the generosity that Ashley inspired in others."