David's Funeral Fund: A Family's Need

My step father David Thebault, the father of my little sister Melissa passed away on Monday April 7th, 2025. David and Melissa had a father daughter relationship like no other. When I would hangout with just the two of them, a new side of Melissa would come out that I had never seen with my mom and I. The entire interaction would consist of great stories and belly laughs. He brought out the best in her and she was his entire world.

David was a rare person that lit up every room with his joyfulness and never ending jokes. There wasn’t a room he walked into without almost making at least one person pee in their pants. I started going to the gym with David a few years ago. I almost stopped going because he would constantly be cracking jokes or making fun of the guy who would run backwards on the treadmill every time we went. I would get an ab workout from laughing so hard. These kinds of people don’t come around often. It feels like an honor to have had him in our lives for as long as we did.

David was one of the strongest people I have ever known. It didn’t matter what he was going through, nothing could bring him down. He taught Melissa and I a very important lesson over the past few years that doesn’t seem like much but has helped tremendously during this time. “You have to wake up and choose happiness everyday. There’s so much to be sad about so you have to choose to be happy.” This is exactly how he was able to be such a light for so many people. He would always be the best version of him and sometimes I wish he would’ve known that he didn’t always have to be so strong.

After watching Melissa go through this, I know that David succeeded in teaching Melissa this exact strength. I’ve honestly never seen someone handle so much tragedy with such maturity. When we went into the ICU on Monday ready to sign the papers to take him off of life support Melissa was not sure of what the day would consist of. So I brought a big pillow to the hospital for her in case she got angry or had any big meltdowns(as if a pillow would even help.) This was not even close to what happened. All of us being there for her was all she needed. I could tell that she knew deep down in her heart that her father was going to a better place. The way she handled herself set the tone for the rest of our family and reminded us that we can get through this together.

David prepared Melissa better than most for a day like this. He would always talk about the strong relationship he had with God. He would say that he is not scared of death because he knows he will be taken care of. The only song that I can remember David singing to us when we were little was, ‘I can only imagine,’ by MercyMe. It has been his favorite song since. He trusted God with everything and knew that with God he could face anything to come his way.

I know that David is in good hands.

If anyone would like to send a donation for David’s funeral arrangements it would mean more than you know. David’s sister, Patricia Ann Thebault McComas, passed away last month on March 4. The family has gone through so much with so little time to grieve and get back to normal life. Any amount helps and will be greatly appreciated. Thank you for taking the time to read and hopefully we will have a date set for the funeral soon.