Honor Maria Elena Wilson: Support Her Family

Hello Loving Friends, Relatives and all Kin who know and love Maria Elena Wilson,

This is Jamie Weber, her eldest grandchild. It is with a heavy heart that I am writing to share that at 5:38 pm on Monday, January 20th, Maria (Mamaw, Kiya, Momma, Teacher, Ria, Auntie, Sis and so many other beloved names) went to be home with Jesus. She died peacefully surround by loved ones, including her husband, Lloyd Wilson who made it in time to sing to her while she was still conscious. She was so happy to see him.

My mom, Brenda Gates her only beloved child, and I got to spend her last 24 hours here earth side feeding her ice chips, helping her cooperate with tests and keeping her comfortable. We spent time holding each other, crying and laughing and being on the adventure we started 39 years ago when she took me home as an 18 year old from the same hospital Mamaw died in.

Mamaw was not a fan of doctors, medicine or any talk of "being sick." When she got ill last week, she got very ill, but continued to improve. However, on Sunday morning 1/19 after taking a shower and putting on her eyebrows- which if you know her is very important to her - she became unresponsive and was rushed by ambulance to the ER.

There we began to learn that she was likely sick with several interacting conditions - in order to protect her privacy we will share simply, she had been sick for a long time and we simply did not know it, which is what she preferred. She is an incredibly strong and powerful person - she cared for herself with a regime of mentholatum, carmex and oil of olay for all of her adult life. May we all be graced with even a percentage of the power she lived with.

My mam is the most beautiful, loving, generous soul that ever graced us earth side - she spent her whole life loving us well and now we would like to invite you all into loving her and us while we grieve.

Mam did not concern herself with earthly, material items. Her treasures have always been in heaven, so her family will need some of your help to cover end of life costs, funeral arrangements and to cover the cost of her ICU stay where the medical staff did everything to save her within her wishes, which lovingly we very clear and guided us well.

Her only grandson lives in California and will want to be home in Washington more in the coming weeks and months to be with family, so any help you can provide to support us being together and celebrate her and grieve is welcome and treasured by her and us.

We are still making arrangements so please stay tuned here for updates. Her beloved niece, Trish and family will be writing her obituary, which we will also post here when that is complete.

She loves you all SO MUCH and she would want you to remember to look to the sky when you need her comfort, she is there and she is with you.

In love and connection, Brenda, Jamie, Jered, Jordan, Joel, Journey, Jim and Rusty and PAPAW - her boyfriend of nearly 63 years