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I am starting this fundraising page to raise money for my sweet friend Michelle, so she can finally get the perfect headstone for her daughter Maci’s grave.
Maci entered this world on January 30, 2014 as Brandon and Michelle's first and only child. She had a heart bigger than Texas and was known by her friends and family for her smile that would light up the room every time she saw her Mommy and Daddy. Early on, her doctors had diagnosed her with colic due to what was described as a “hard stomach”, but told Michelle and her husband Brandon that there was nothing to worry about. And to ease any of Michelle’s and Brandon’s concerns, Maci’s fussiness was few and far between, never indicating a single thing was wrong. She was just a beautiful, happy little girl who loved her froggy stuffed animal, trying to grab the family dog Casper, and being held and cuddled by anyone who would hold her.
The morning of June 10, 2014 started out like every other morning of Maci’s, Michelle’s and Brandon’s life. They ate breakfast, prepared bottles, got ready for daycare and work, and dropped Maci off at day care, just like every other day for the previous two months. Michelle was at work when she received the call that haunts every parent’s worse nightmare. It was Michelle’s mom, telling her that the police had been trying to get ahold of her and that our 4 1/2 month old Maci had been found in her crib unresponsive and was at the hospital.
Her entire world went black.
The next two days were a complete blur as Michelle and Brandon had to make decisions for their beautiful, perfect baby girl that no parent should ever have to make. Because the daycare had left Maci in the crib and didn’t take notice of her longer than usual “nap”, she was left for almost an hour with no oxygen getting to her brain. By the time she was rushed to the hospital, there was nothing the doctors could do. Maci was brain dead. She was connected to life support and Michelle, Brandon and their families were told that all they could now was pray. But the swelling and damage was too great for Maci’s tiny body, and on June 12, at 11:38pm Michelle and Brandon had to make the excruciating decision to remove their precious,4 1/2month old daughter from life support. God gained a little angel as Maci LeeAnn peacefully passed while resting in her favorite place on earth, her mommy’s arms with Daddy right next to their side.
After Maci’s sudden passing, it was discovered in the autopsy that healthy, happy, perfect little Maci actually had Crohn’s Disease, and her death was a result of a perforated colon.
For months Michelle blamed herself for what happened. She kept replaying in her mind the day leading up to Maci being found unresponsive, and kept asking herself what she could have done better. Her job was to protect Maci, how could she let this happen? How could she not see this coming? How could she not know that her baby was sick? She was so happy, why weren’t there any signs? As time passed, the harsh realization hit that there was nothing Michelle could have controlled that would have changed the outcome of Maci passing. But Maci’s head stone was something she did have control over, and she wanted to do it correctly. She needed to find Maci the perfect headstone to symbolize what Maci loved and how much she meant to their family. Michelle had the design in her mind, and Brandon drew it out making it exactly how they had imagined it. And finally, after two years of saving, they almost had enough money to get Maci her perfect headstone. Then, right before Christmas of 2016, Brandon, Michelle and her family suffered another devastating blow. Michelle’s mom, who had been battling pulmonary hypertension lost her fight. Brandon and Michelle had to make yet another hard decision to use almost all the money they had saved for Maci’s head stone to cover the weeks they took off from work to spend with Michelle's mom for her final days, time for the berevement period as well, and unexpected medical bills for Michelle.
So, I am coming to friends and family, and maybe even some strangers to help Michelle, Brandon and her family raise enough money to give Maci the perfect headstone. A headstone that symbolizes the life of a little girl who is so loved and missed by her family who just want to give her the proper rememberance she deserves, which in turn will provide closure and peace to a family who has been through so much. If you are not able to donate, just sharing her story is more than enough. Thank you so much.
Maci entered this world on January 30, 2014 as Brandon and Michelle's first and only child. She had a heart bigger than Texas and was known by her friends and family for her smile that would light up the room every time she saw her Mommy and Daddy. Early on, her doctors had diagnosed her with colic due to what was described as a “hard stomach”, but told Michelle and her husband Brandon that there was nothing to worry about. And to ease any of Michelle’s and Brandon’s concerns, Maci’s fussiness was few and far between, never indicating a single thing was wrong. She was just a beautiful, happy little girl who loved her froggy stuffed animal, trying to grab the family dog Casper, and being held and cuddled by anyone who would hold her.
The morning of June 10, 2014 started out like every other morning of Maci’s, Michelle’s and Brandon’s life. They ate breakfast, prepared bottles, got ready for daycare and work, and dropped Maci off at day care, just like every other day for the previous two months. Michelle was at work when she received the call that haunts every parent’s worse nightmare. It was Michelle’s mom, telling her that the police had been trying to get ahold of her and that our 4 1/2 month old Maci had been found in her crib unresponsive and was at the hospital.
Her entire world went black.
The next two days were a complete blur as Michelle and Brandon had to make decisions for their beautiful, perfect baby girl that no parent should ever have to make. Because the daycare had left Maci in the crib and didn’t take notice of her longer than usual “nap”, she was left for almost an hour with no oxygen getting to her brain. By the time she was rushed to the hospital, there was nothing the doctors could do. Maci was brain dead. She was connected to life support and Michelle, Brandon and their families were told that all they could now was pray. But the swelling and damage was too great for Maci’s tiny body, and on June 12, at 11:38pm Michelle and Brandon had to make the excruciating decision to remove their precious,4 1/2month old daughter from life support. God gained a little angel as Maci LeeAnn peacefully passed while resting in her favorite place on earth, her mommy’s arms with Daddy right next to their side.
After Maci’s sudden passing, it was discovered in the autopsy that healthy, happy, perfect little Maci actually had Crohn’s Disease, and her death was a result of a perforated colon.
For months Michelle blamed herself for what happened. She kept replaying in her mind the day leading up to Maci being found unresponsive, and kept asking herself what she could have done better. Her job was to protect Maci, how could she let this happen? How could she not see this coming? How could she not know that her baby was sick? She was so happy, why weren’t there any signs? As time passed, the harsh realization hit that there was nothing Michelle could have controlled that would have changed the outcome of Maci passing. But Maci’s head stone was something she did have control over, and she wanted to do it correctly. She needed to find Maci the perfect headstone to symbolize what Maci loved and how much she meant to their family. Michelle had the design in her mind, and Brandon drew it out making it exactly how they had imagined it. And finally, after two years of saving, they almost had enough money to get Maci her perfect headstone. Then, right before Christmas of 2016, Brandon, Michelle and her family suffered another devastating blow. Michelle’s mom, who had been battling pulmonary hypertension lost her fight. Brandon and Michelle had to make yet another hard decision to use almost all the money they had saved for Maci’s head stone to cover the weeks they took off from work to spend with Michelle's mom for her final days, time for the berevement period as well, and unexpected medical bills for Michelle.
So, I am coming to friends and family, and maybe even some strangers to help Michelle, Brandon and her family raise enough money to give Maci the perfect headstone. A headstone that symbolizes the life of a little girl who is so loved and missed by her family who just want to give her the proper rememberance she deserves, which in turn will provide closure and peace to a family who has been through so much. If you are not able to donate, just sharing her story is more than enough. Thank you so much.