Support Harrison and Katie DeCreny
Donation protected
Harry and Katie are the best of people. They are the kind of people that make you feel like family, whether you've known them for 10 years or 10 minutes. Their love and passion for life shines through everything they do. It shines through them as musicians, it shines through their humor and laughter with friends and it, probably most brightly, shines through their incredible marriage. Having known each other since high school and then going to college together, their strong friendship eventually led them to find a deeper love and they were married May 31st, 2013.
Earlier this year, they found out they would soon become parents to twin boys, Bennett Michael and Lennon Douglas. The last seven months have been filled with joy and excitement; sonograms, first kicks, baby showers, family visits, nesting and all of the other wonderful things leading up to the birth of children. Their happiness was palpable and contagious and we all knew what amazing parents they were going to be.
But on Monday, September 4th, 2017, their joy and excitement came to an abrupt and absolutely devastating halt. They were met with the news that their beautiful twin boys, Benny and Lenny, were gone. Here are Katie’s own words that she posted to Facebook on Saturday, September 9th.
“It's impossible to properly put into words all that we are feeling right now. In a matter of 24 hours we went from absolute jubilation and excitement as we prepared for the birth of our sons to devastation and heartbreak.
On Monday, September 4th, 2017, Bennett Michael and Lennon Douglas came into the world in silence. Without heartbeats of their own, they took pieces of ours with them to a place of peace among the heavens. We are so grateful for the 31 weeks we were able to spend loving them and caring for them. Even more, we are grateful to have been able to see their faces, hold them close to us, and sing to them before saying our final goodbye. And we are Grateful to our families for helping to lift us up as we face the most difficult challenge we've ever had to face. The slivers of silver linings surrounding this tragedy are barely perceptible, but they are there and growing in number. Finding comfort in each other's arms, knowing that our boys will be looking after us, the endless amount of love and support we've received from all corners of our lives has helped us to breathe even the slightest bit easier. Our hearts are heavy and often it feels as if the universe has dealt us an unfair hand, but we've been rewarded with a beautiful sign as well.
Over the weekend, we found a grasshopper sitting atop our grape vine. When we came home from the hospital on Wednesday he was still there. A day later another, smaller grasshopper appeared in the mint. In many cultures the grasshopper symbolizes good fortune, fertility and omens the birth of a son. In addition, grasshoppers were kept as pets as it was believed they took on the personalities of deceased family members.
So our boys are closely guarding us and teaching an important lesson. Much like the grasshopper we can only jump forward, there's no going backward, there's no diversionary path, we soldier on in memory of our beautiful boys. Our every thought and every action is for them, and in doing so they will live eternally through us.”
As they go through this impossible time in their lives, those of us that love them are all wanting to do something. But, what can we do? Though money isn’t going to fill the void they are undoubtedly feeling, it can give them what they may need most: Time. Time to heal, time to lean on each other, time away from work to find a new normal, time to focus on themselves and how to move forward. We also want to make sure they have whatever funds they need to give the boys a proper service. Basically, we want to provide them with enough so that money doesn’t have to be on their minds right now.
Harry and Katie aren’t aware we are doing this. If we can raise these funds and then surprise them with the generosity of those around them, it’s an opportunity to bring some joy back into their world. So we ask you to show your support for them as they go through the unthinkable. Any amount will help.
Let’s do this for Lenny, Benny, Harry and Katie.
Earlier this year, they found out they would soon become parents to twin boys, Bennett Michael and Lennon Douglas. The last seven months have been filled with joy and excitement; sonograms, first kicks, baby showers, family visits, nesting and all of the other wonderful things leading up to the birth of children. Their happiness was palpable and contagious and we all knew what amazing parents they were going to be.
But on Monday, September 4th, 2017, their joy and excitement came to an abrupt and absolutely devastating halt. They were met with the news that their beautiful twin boys, Benny and Lenny, were gone. Here are Katie’s own words that she posted to Facebook on Saturday, September 9th.
“It's impossible to properly put into words all that we are feeling right now. In a matter of 24 hours we went from absolute jubilation and excitement as we prepared for the birth of our sons to devastation and heartbreak.
On Monday, September 4th, 2017, Bennett Michael and Lennon Douglas came into the world in silence. Without heartbeats of their own, they took pieces of ours with them to a place of peace among the heavens. We are so grateful for the 31 weeks we were able to spend loving them and caring for them. Even more, we are grateful to have been able to see their faces, hold them close to us, and sing to them before saying our final goodbye. And we are Grateful to our families for helping to lift us up as we face the most difficult challenge we've ever had to face. The slivers of silver linings surrounding this tragedy are barely perceptible, but they are there and growing in number. Finding comfort in each other's arms, knowing that our boys will be looking after us, the endless amount of love and support we've received from all corners of our lives has helped us to breathe even the slightest bit easier. Our hearts are heavy and often it feels as if the universe has dealt us an unfair hand, but we've been rewarded with a beautiful sign as well.
Over the weekend, we found a grasshopper sitting atop our grape vine. When we came home from the hospital on Wednesday he was still there. A day later another, smaller grasshopper appeared in the mint. In many cultures the grasshopper symbolizes good fortune, fertility and omens the birth of a son. In addition, grasshoppers were kept as pets as it was believed they took on the personalities of deceased family members.
So our boys are closely guarding us and teaching an important lesson. Much like the grasshopper we can only jump forward, there's no going backward, there's no diversionary path, we soldier on in memory of our beautiful boys. Our every thought and every action is for them, and in doing so they will live eternally through us.”
As they go through this impossible time in their lives, those of us that love them are all wanting to do something. But, what can we do? Though money isn’t going to fill the void they are undoubtedly feeling, it can give them what they may need most: Time. Time to heal, time to lean on each other, time away from work to find a new normal, time to focus on themselves and how to move forward. We also want to make sure they have whatever funds they need to give the boys a proper service. Basically, we want to provide them with enough so that money doesn’t have to be on their minds right now.
Harry and Katie aren’t aware we are doing this. If we can raise these funds and then surprise them with the generosity of those around them, it’s an opportunity to bring some joy back into their world. So we ask you to show your support for them as they go through the unthinkable. Any amount will help.
Let’s do this for Lenny, Benny, Harry and Katie.
Organizer and beneficiary
David Andino
Organizer
New York, NY
Kathryn Carter
Beneficiary
