Support Kevin Dean Fordham's Memorial and Cremation

Kevin Dean Fordham Memorial

Years ago, while consoling his son Matthew after the loss of a dear pet, Kevin shared a passage from a book by Bruce Coville. The book, called “Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher,” is about a boy named Jeremy Thatcher who finds a mysterious magic shop and buys an egg, which turns out to be a dragon. Jeremy raises the dragon, named Timiat, from a tiny hatchling to a full-grown dragon. When it comes time for Jeremy to return Timiat to her magical world, Jeremy isn’t ready to let her go. If you listen carefully, you can almost hear Kevin reading the passage now.

“I don’t want Tiamat to go back,” said Jeremy sullenly. “I want her to stay here with me.”

Miss Priest laughed. It was not a horrible laugh at all. “What a terrible idea!” she said. “Why do you want her to stay?”

Because I love her. I don’t want to lose her.”

Miss Priest reached out and took his chin in her hand. She looked into his eyes. “You silly boy,” she said. “Nothing you love is lost. Not really. Things, people—they always go away, sooner or later. You can’t hold them, any more than you can hold moonlight. But if they’ve touched you, if they’re inside you, then they’re still yours. The only things you ever really have are the ones you hold inside your heart.”

Although Kevin was taken from this world too soon, none of us would have ever been ready to let him go. Although Kevin moved on to his next grand adventure without us, this isn’t “goodbye.” He wouldn’t want us to grieve by sitting and crying, yelling in anger, or spiraling out in confusion trying to make sense of a senseless act. He would want us to come together and crack a cold one, light a good cigar, and share happy thoughts and memories of the scoundrel he was (and no doubt still is … wherever his next adventure has taken him).

All funds will be used for Kevin’s memorial, cremation, and planting a memorial magnolia tree. Lorry has asked to plant the tree at the Fordham residence with some of Kevin’s ashes and the ashes of Kevin’s brother, Sam, and beloved cat, Belle Star, who predeceased him.