In Honour of Victoria Bevilacqua

"How lucky am I to have had something that makes saying goodbye so hard," -Winnie the Pooh.

You never had to ask Victoria Rose what mattered most to her, she made it lovingly clear that it was and is always about her kids. She was an intensely proud mama bear who gushed about her little loves every day. It was a privilege for us to be invited in and tag along with her as she narrated her journey through parenthood in some of the funniest, most heartwarming social media posts you could find. She had a big heart. She was immensely kind and intensely sweet. She loved loved animals. She also loved riding in cars (or on dirt bikes) with her boys, Brian and Logan. That is, until very recently when Shea was born. Suddenly the appeal of baby girl dresses and teeny tiny shoes came calling and sounded pretty fun.

So, it's with a heavy heart that we had to say goodbye to Tori so suddenly this week. At only 24 years old, the loss feels indescribable and unreal. Tori was too young. She would have turned 25 next month. In her eyes and ours, she had the whole world ahead of her. She had time to plan for the things she wanted most for her family and her kids. Now without her, her husband Brian must raise and care for their two children on his own. We'd like to support him in doing so by helping to ease the financial strain he may feel. Tori had no life insurance policy and no benefits for her children from her work. We'd like to help Brian, now a 27 year old single father of a nearly 3 year old son and 3 month old daughter, give their children the best start at life possible. Your financial support will help Brian to provide childcare for his kids when he is ready to return to work. It'll help buy necessities like formula and diapers. We're also hoping it'll help create a nest egg for Logan and Shea to tap into as they grow and move from babies to adults. Your help is more than appreciated. Any support would mean the world to us, Tori's family, but would definitely mean a hopeful future for her kids.

Tori's sisters Emily Bevilacqua and Katie Bevilaqua along with their parents Fern and Maggie and Tori's husband Brian would like to thank all of you who have supported them in this very difficult time.  The response has been overwhelming.  Emily has taken charge of withdrawing the contributions. She has set up an education account for Logan and Shea, and has also set up an account to assist Brian with childcare costs.