Recently, my brother Damien unexpectedly passed away. He was born premature with cerebral palsy and was partially blind. The doctors did what they could to give him a fighting chance with a life expectancy of one year. Damien thrived, grew, and survived 40 more years!!!

He didn’t just learn to crawl and soon walk, but to RUN LOL! He took off running with leg braces on like he was the original Forrest Gump. He always wanted to run and play. Damien, though physically challenged, didn’t skip a beat at being witty and sarcastic. He loved to tell jokes and grab women’s butts . He was extremely full of life, laughter, and had a smile that would turn your day totally around just by talking with him for a few seconds.

At the age of 8, our mother, who was Damien’s favorite person, passed away at 47. Unfortunately, at this point, all of us siblings grew up and grew apart. Damien was placed in an assisted living home in Southern California where he would be taken care of around the clock. I was sent to Alaska, our other brother remained in California, another to Washington, and our three older siblings eventually ended up in Texas. Us siblings have not been together since our mom's passing in '92.

I am trying to raise money to go to Texas and have Damien’s Celebration of Life with all of his brothers and sisters. Being in Alaska kinda makes that a financial difficulty. I’m needing to purchase plane tickets, a rental car, and everything needed for his celebration of life.

Anything would help and be an extreme blessing.