LBI Memorial Bench in honor of Chloe Belle
As many of you know, our Chloe passed away on January 14th after a 13 month battle with AML Leukemia.
The world was robbed of Chloe. In the last 3 months that I have had to live without her, I have made a pact within myself to never let the world forget Chloe.
Chloe exceeded every doctors expectations. I was often met with curious and awestruck minds. Minds that could easily understand very complex chromosomal abnormalities yet couldn't comprehend how a young girl who was barely 90 pounds, paralyzed from her neck to feet and with every inch of her bone marrow filled to the brim with cells bred to kill could not only simply still be living but still remain with an untouched desire for life.
Chloe was indeed facing imminent death at the ripe old age of 25. I believe the answer their inquisitive minds craved regarding how Chloe was able to stay alive much longer than expected can be attributed to a mix of things. One being Chloe's love of being alive. Holding such strong visions of a future caused her mind to rewind her clock of life back even if just mere seconds. Seconds that were worth millions to me.
I know many of those visions were centered around Long Beach Island. A wide brimmed hat protecting her now healthy head, her perfectly curated music playlist and crashing waves vibrating in her now healthy ears, sand beneath her now healthy feet and the sun basking upon her now healthy body. A large collection of adolescent memories there only strengthening those fantasies making it all the more vivid for her (a majority of her life considering how short her life was).
Chloe left behind writings, vision board photographs, and Spotify playlists all expressing this strong dream to be back there once again. I came to realize after her death that this was a big part of how she kept herself alive. I thought to myself... what if I now used this to keep her (memory) alive?
MY PROPOSAL: A Memorial Bench dedicated to Chloe placed on the beach at Harvey Cedars, NJ (LBI). Specifically, at the end of the dunes of the block we used to live on. A place where Chloe lived some of her most cherished memories.
BREAKDOWN OF FINANCES: This is all done through the town of Harvey Cedars - $400 for Bench, up to $450 for engraving (I have not decided what I want to write on the bench but each character is priced individually - extra for special characters), $150 for shipping. Making the goal $1,000. Any money that exceeds the goal will be donated to (and split between)The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and Give Kids The World in Chloe’s name/honor. This will be a public bench placed on a public beach so anyone and everyone can use it and go visit it. This also benefits the beautiful town of Harvey Cedars. Everyone who donates will be apart of this bench that will not only honor Chloe but be apart of many people's lives who are creating their own happy summer memories.
Through the creation and existence of this memorial bench, Chloe will be remembered particularly in a place she loved very much. Her memory will be kept alive in an atmosphere that she cherished. Her essence will be back in the place that she yearned to be.
This will be kept open until Chloe's birthday, which would have been her 27th birthday, on August 29, 2021. Thank you so much to everyone. Your support means more to me than I can ever possibly express.
“What we once enjoyed and deeply loved we can never lose, for all that we love deeply becomes a part of us.”
― Helen Keller
The world was robbed of Chloe. In the last 3 months that I have had to live without her, I have made a pact within myself to never let the world forget Chloe.
Chloe exceeded every doctors expectations. I was often met with curious and awestruck minds. Minds that could easily understand very complex chromosomal abnormalities yet couldn't comprehend how a young girl who was barely 90 pounds, paralyzed from her neck to feet and with every inch of her bone marrow filled to the brim with cells bred to kill could not only simply still be living but still remain with an untouched desire for life.
Chloe was indeed facing imminent death at the ripe old age of 25. I believe the answer their inquisitive minds craved regarding how Chloe was able to stay alive much longer than expected can be attributed to a mix of things. One being Chloe's love of being alive. Holding such strong visions of a future caused her mind to rewind her clock of life back even if just mere seconds. Seconds that were worth millions to me.
I know many of those visions were centered around Long Beach Island. A wide brimmed hat protecting her now healthy head, her perfectly curated music playlist and crashing waves vibrating in her now healthy ears, sand beneath her now healthy feet and the sun basking upon her now healthy body. A large collection of adolescent memories there only strengthening those fantasies making it all the more vivid for her (a majority of her life considering how short her life was).
Chloe left behind writings, vision board photographs, and Spotify playlists all expressing this strong dream to be back there once again. I came to realize after her death that this was a big part of how she kept herself alive. I thought to myself... what if I now used this to keep her (memory) alive?
MY PROPOSAL: A Memorial Bench dedicated to Chloe placed on the beach at Harvey Cedars, NJ (LBI). Specifically, at the end of the dunes of the block we used to live on. A place where Chloe lived some of her most cherished memories.
BREAKDOWN OF FINANCES: This is all done through the town of Harvey Cedars - $400 for Bench, up to $450 for engraving (I have not decided what I want to write on the bench but each character is priced individually - extra for special characters), $150 for shipping. Making the goal $1,000. Any money that exceeds the goal will be donated to (and split between)The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and Give Kids The World in Chloe’s name/honor. This will be a public bench placed on a public beach so anyone and everyone can use it and go visit it. This also benefits the beautiful town of Harvey Cedars. Everyone who donates will be apart of this bench that will not only honor Chloe but be apart of many people's lives who are creating their own happy summer memories.
Through the creation and existence of this memorial bench, Chloe will be remembered particularly in a place she loved very much. Her memory will be kept alive in an atmosphere that she cherished. Her essence will be back in the place that she yearned to be.
This will be kept open until Chloe's birthday, which would have been her 27th birthday, on August 29, 2021. Thank you so much to everyone. Your support means more to me than I can ever possibly express.
“What we once enjoyed and deeply loved we can never lose, for all that we love deeply becomes a part of us.”
― Helen Keller
Organizer
Remi Lindberg
Organizer
Long Beach Township, NJ