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Support Mari’s Dance with Death: Joy, Generosity & Ease
0% complete
$24,470 raised of $28K
262 donations
Ireland happened. ❤️
Thanks to the generosity of this community, Mari made her lifelong dream of visiting Ireland a reality. She visited Westport, connected with her ancestral roots, listened to Celtic music, connected with nature, and shared the experience with friends.
Now we’re continuing to raise money for Mari’s dance with death: helping her spend the time she has left with as much joy, generosity, connection, and ease as possible.
What your support makes possible:
- Funds can help Mari:
- Spend time with people she loves
- Touch as many trees as possible
- Take her planned trip to Florida
- Attend a meditation retreat
- Make sure her dog, Sam, is provided for
- Cover unexpected medical and end-of-life expenses
- Create a legacy fund to help others experience the joy of movement
- Say yes to luxuries and simple joys she has never afforded herself
- Appreciate the people helping her navigate this chapter
- Create opportunities to celebrate, gather, and share memories
- And, of course, there may be a few more “why not?” moments along the way.
Choosing quality of life
Mari has lived with Type 1 diabetes for 45 years, since she was 16. She was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004 and underwent a mastectomy in 2010. In June 2026, she learned that cancerous nodules on her chest wall were growing again.
After talking with her doctor, Mari made the difficult decision to stop treatment and focus on quality of life rather than quantity of life.
And she is living that choice.
Mari continues to run, bike, swim, and give her time in service to the YWCA Women’s Triathlon. She is also making room for the people, experiences, nature, movement, laughter, and simple pleasures that matter most to her.
Ireland was just the beginning
The original goal of this fundraiser was to help Mari get to Ireland.
You did that.
Now we have the opportunity to help make the rest of her journey a little easier and a lot more joyful.
Your generosity gives Mari something incredibly valuable: freedom from some of the financial stress that comes with the end of life. It allows her to spend more energy on living, loving, moving, connecting, and saying yes.
Whether you give $10, $100, or more, you are helping Mari dance with death on her own terms.
Thank you for being part of this community and for helping surround Mari with generosity.
Want to share something with Mari?
Mari has told us that your words of support are invaluable to her. She encouraged the fundraising team to create this form so people can share their appreciations, memories, and love directly with her.
