Getting Nicole Home for Goodbye

For those of you who have known my family and I you should know that we have taken much pride in sharing a beautiful life filled with memories of my sister, Nicole.




She was bright, she was bubbly, she was witty and beautiful. This evening at about midnight I received the news that she is no longer with us.





My heart is broken in a way I never thought possible.








My sister is an Army Veteran from OIF. She has not only served her country dutifully and bravely, but with an utmost amount of grace. She has blessed me over the years by being my big sister: my mentor, my inspiration, but most importantly: MY BEST FRIEND.



Expenses exceed my budget (ie: I'm broke) to get her back to Boston for a final place to rest.

She passed away in her home in Los Angeles after battling years of ups and downs since her deployment in 2003.

My family is in no financial position to get her home in a timely manner. I am fully humbling myself and extending my gratitude for anyone who can help me with financial assistance to get my sister home so that she may receive a proper burial. I would also like to see my father have some closure, as they were very close.

This is a very devastating time for my family. The reality of it is that we have a lot of work to do before we can grieve. Please help me help my sister come home so that we can lay her to rest.

Any funds incurred will assist in shipment of her remains to Boston as well as helping to recover her belongings and items she so pridefully accumulated during her many years of being a rambling and beautiful soul.

For those who do not feel comfortable donating online, please make checks payable to Amanda Ortiz or Mallory Ortiz and mail them / drop them off to Ink Jam Tattoo Studio 12 Park Avenue, Arlington, MA or 65 Winn St. Apt. 3 Woburn MA 01801.

I trust in the innate goodness that people possess because that is a quality I have learned from my sister Nicole.


Thank you and God Bless .