2002: Laurie Lewis balanced a full academic load, a part-time job at BJ’s and a volatile relationship with JR Chandler. But none of these problems were greater than what Laurie had to deal with at home. After her mother’s death in a car accident, Laurie’s father, Doug Lewis, turned to the bottle. He lost his job at Chandler Industries, forcing Laurie to take on a job to make ends meet.
JR and Laurie began seeing each other in secret. Neither wanted to risk their parents seeing them together. When Doug did catch Laurie, he struck her down.

2003: Adam offered Laurie a free ride to Harvard if she left JR. Laurie admitted she was considering the offer. When JR found out, he broke things off. She found comfort in Jamie Martin’s, JR’s brother, arms. Joni Stafford caught them in a kiss. When JR found out, he lashed out against Laurie and Jamie. JR decided to leave town for good.
Laurie’s father’s alcoholism worsened. She found support in the strangest of places. Dr. David Hayward had just lost his own daughter and did not want to see Doug loose Laurie. He helped her stage an intervention. Doug agreed to enter treatment in a Minnesota rehab center. Laurie thanked David for making the arrangements. She decided to defer her admissions to Pine Valley University to help her father recover.