08/11/2026
Yesterday my heart was so full, yet so broken. I wrote a speech that I really could not get out. For the first time, for some reason, I could not read my own words aloud. I tried. I tried for the hour before I was meant to actually do it. So, I did not read what I wrote. I do want you all to see one part of the speech, so here goes:
People often say, “I don’t know how you do this. I could never do this. I would be dead too.” And my simple reply is this, our son deserves parents who have lived for him. Our daughter deserves to be spoken to each day and allowed to live on earth. Our love for Gigi has to continue, and the amount of love that we have received from our family, friends and community needs a place to go. So we live that love everyday. We heal from that love everyday. We pick up the pieces each and every day and move forward in a different manner than we did before Gigi passed away. You see, when we lost Gigi, we were broken into pieces. Our hearts, our souls, our beings were truly split into pieces that will never quite fit the same every again. Nothing will ever be able to make them whole again. But, from those pieces something new emerged and is whole. It was created in this storm. As the world changed and the fragments scattered around us, they landed complete. This is the 2026 version of turning 5 loaves of bread and two fish into enough. With the help of all of you, every single person who has been to an event, every single person who has donated an item, every single person who has donated a dollar or an hour, every single person who has said a prayer in the silence of their hearts for our family, for our Gigi and for this foundation… you have made this thing hole. You have turned broken pieces into enough. We are not miracle workers or Jesus. But together we have turned the 5 loaves and two fish into something amazing. We have created this foundation to serve people. Together, we have donated $36,580.40 to families in need. You guys have reached as far as California, Missouri, Florida and so many families in our own communities. In 18 months guys, almost $40,000 has gone to families that would struggle to bury their children, which no one should ever have to do. Or it has gone to children who may not have been able to partake in sports because it wasn’t in their family’s budget. This foundation has been enough for so many families. Every small donation, every small piece, has given people enough.
So, while our lives and hearts will never be whole again- this foundation is whole... full... complete... enough. You are all apart of this new part of our lives. You all are a part of someone else's story, whom you will never meet or know. You are a part of $36,580.40 of donations that have saved people! You all have given generously from your heart- THANK YOU!