In Loving Memory of Carolyn Garabedian

Everyone who has had the good fortune to live within my sister-in-law Carolyn Garabedian's orbit knows that she was a joyous, fun-loving, warmhearted, fiercely loyal force to be reckoned with. Unfortunately, that seemingly unstoppable force was cut short on Friday, April 9th. An extremely private person, Carolyn had been in declining health for quite some time, but bore it without complaint until she finally asked to be taken to the ER on Easter Sunday when she experienced difficulty breathing. Her husband and sons - who all doted over her - expected that she would be given some antibiotics or breathing therapy and be sent home...but that day would be the last time they would see her conscious. She was put on a ventilator, and within 24 hours her beloved husband and sons learned the shocking, heartbreaking news that Carolyn had inoperable, untreatable lung cancer that had taken over her entire right lung and invaded her heart and lymph nodes. Despite the best efforts of the talented ICU team at Mission Hospital, within just a few short days Carolyn's organs had all begun to fail; finally the family made the gut-wrenching decision to withdraw artificial life support, and within minutes of doing so, Carolyn passed peacefully and painlessly to a better place.

Carolyn leaves behind her beloved husband of 50 years, Haig; their two sons (James and Michael) whom she loved with every fiber of her being; a family business that gave meaningful work to hundreds of people in Orange County but was hit hard first by COVID and then again by Carolyn's illness; and a mountain of medical and funerary expenses. All donations made here will be used to support the American Cancer Society and to help to pay down the enormous debts incurred over the unexpected, unthinkable six days between Carolyn's desperate gasp for help and her final passing. I thank you in advance for any support and compassion you can offer to this family, in loving memory of their wife and mother, Carolyn.