My name is Katrina and on November 23rd my adopted father-turned-mother Michele passed away from complications from prolonged dialysis. As her eldest child, it became my role to ensure her wishes were fulfilled in this challenging, sudden situation. With little notice I rushed to be by her side in ICU in Kingston, NY, luckily was able to move her to a more peaceful environment in hospice care, and was with her during her death alongside Michele's sister and best friend. It was one of the hardest but most beautiful moments of my life proving that you never know where life will take you - or what you are capable of.

Why this is needed

Unfortunately, there has been sudden and shocking intolerance towards her transition from other surviving family members after hear death, and her sister/my aunt and I are the only family ensuring that her legacy and identity as a woman are preserved. It was her wish to be buried with my brother/her son, Carl, in Wisconsin, and we have incredibly been able to acquire a burial plot adjacent to his.

This campaign is to recuperate the costs of her funeral including cremation, burial, and other general expenses incurred during the trips to Kingston and Wisconsin in the spring - and crucially purchase the headstone bearing her full name against my family's wishes. With additional funds, we would also like to create a memorial for her with the LGBTQ Center of Hudson Valley which she frequented so that we may honor her life where she lived happily as a trans woman - truly herself - for almost two decades.

About Michele

The truth is Michele and I hadn't reconnected in over a decade. When my parents divorced after her transition we all went our separate ways and as life will have it we fell out of touch. In those precious ten days of reunification before her death we caught up on our respective lives - her love of rock climbing and cooking, learning to play the piano and guitar, becoming an amateur woodworker and supporting the arts - and I was able to connect with her friends and favorite local haunts in Hudson Valley.

In this time I came to recognize just how much of an impact she had on me growing up - I am who I am because of her from my love of Rush to walking in the woods and playing pool. We both needed each other more than we knew at that crucial time and I'm so lucky for even this short amount of time with her at the end. It was an honor to be there for her and I wish to honor her in death with the same dignity she deserved in life.

From my heart to yours

Any amount will help us to fulfill her dying wishes. All of this has been beyond my means and I am so grateful for your help! Together we build the community of care we need - as Michele showed me through her forgiveness, courage, and love.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for your support.

(If you'd like to read more about my last days with Michele you can see my Instagram post here and read my full article about our history on my Substack here.)