Fund for James Armstead Memorial Service

Hi, I am Denise.

On February 16, 2022, I learned that I had lost my best friend. I had last spoken to him on February 6th in one of our usual long phone conversations. He was making dinner while we talked, and he sounded fine, he was cheerful. On February 16th, I checked my voicemails because I always use a spam blocker and didn't want to chance missing an important call. A voicemail transcript from Jimmy's building management sent the day before was the first thing I saw, and immediately a feeling of dread enveloped me. You see, Jimmy had me and our son listed as "Next of Kin," so any outreach from building management meant something was very wrong. I immediately retuned their call and they asked if I had seen or talked to Jimmy lately. They told me that they had been calling him and knocking on his door, with no answer to either. Although I didn't want to believe it, I knew then that he was gone. I asked them to do a welfare check; they called me back minutes later and confirmed my worst fears; they found him lying on his bed; and he was deceased. Hearing those words took my breath away. I was absolutely crushed. Jimmy and I knew each other for many years. We were not a couple for many years but we remained best friends and were always there for each other. I really cannot imagine my life without him in it. And what hurts the most is that by looking at his call log I determined that Jimmy had actually died on February 8th, but his body was not found until February 16th. I am so hurt that Jimmy laid there, alone in death for 8 days, with no one to care for him after he passed. Jimmy didn't deserve to end his life that way; no one does.

Jimmy was, as we all are, an imperfect person. He could be impatient and prone to arguing with those who shared views contrary to his, but he was also extremely kind, caring, and sensitive towards others. I used to always tease him because whenever anyone he knew was in the hospital, he always visited. Over the years he had given people who were down on their luck a temporary place to stay. He helped anyone he knew that was a a shut-in by shopping for groceries and running errands for them. And of course he was always there for me and our son; whatever the reason.

I already knew that when the time came Jimmy would want me to make his final arrangements; and I knew that he wanted to be cremated. We had often talked about that. Although I would constantly nag him about it, Jimmy did not have any life insurance. This past year he started talking about getting insured, but he never got around to it.

So, I created this GoFundMe campaign to raise enough money for his cremation and Memorial service. No one was with Jimmy in his last hours, so I hope that together we can be there to "send him home" in the manner he deserves.

Understandably, because of the nature of this fundraiser, I am trying to raise these funds as quickly as possible, and I will be in charge of the final expenses.

Please know that any and all donation will be greatly appreciated.

We thank you in advance for your kind generosity.