Anne's Celebration of Life and Familial Support Fund

In March of this year - Anne and her family received some life-altering news. What we thought were painful broken ribs for 9 weeks ended up being a small part of a bigger, much more profound health crisis - Anne was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer.

With a heavy heart we share that on April 17th Anne was called to heaven. She left this physical earth with the same light we all knew her to carry. Anne is survived by her husband Dean, daughter Elaina, son Karsten, and granddaughter Emery. She was a Mother, Daughter, Sister, Grandmother, Mother-in-law, Friend, and Mentor. All of whom will live a life with as much courage and grace as Anne set the example of. In all of these roles she built relationships with people who will carry on her beautiful spirit.

As you can imagine, this loss is devastating to the Vlahos family. Due to many circumstances at hand - we are now in the position of needing to ask for help instead of being able to offer it. The donations will go towards a celebration of life for Anne (date TBD) and to decrease familial expenses incurred through this loss.

At this time, the Vlahos family asks graciously for your donations - no amount of money is too small - and we urge you to not feel burdened or pressured by this request but to instead, donate whatever value that feels comfortable to YOU with the most loving and caring intentions. If you are unable to provide a financial donation at this time - please feel free to offer spiritual/religious donations such as prayer, good intentions, or any other healing/motivating modality of your choosing for the Vlahos family.

One of many Anne's accomplishments was writing the novel, "...to die for, The Gifts of Being Present Through LOSS and GRIEF." It is rare that we have the words of loved ones to walk us through grief. In this tragic loss we would like to leave you with a passage from her book:

"I felt some of the joy that I had felt when my child was finally born when my mom and dad finally passed away. I get a sense that it is not only a relief that the person is gone and the suffering is done; I think that there is some real joy in knowing that we have labored along with them as they birthed their soul from their earthly body. The result is truly a beautiful thing. Like labor and delivery, it is a bit messy, but the result is the liberation of their soul from a body no longer able to provide life's experiences."

Thank you for your donations to the Vlahos family and your support through this unimaginable time.

-Photo credit: Barrie Fisher