Brandi Washburn

Cheryl Smith Celebration of Life My mother-in-law, Cheryl Smith, passed away on Tuesday, May 19, 2026. When we got the call that she passed away it was no more than a HOUR before her family got to her and she was ice cold, stiff and she was losing all of her bodily fluids but yet they told us she just passed away. I am sorry that's not possible. So that is leaving us with so many questions? Mom's legs were purple as well and she was yellow. Mom's hands were in fists when we got there and we couldn't even move her fingers. She was a wonderful woman, and she was young. She was only 69 years old. She just turned 69 on April 21, 2026. She didn't have any life insurance, so we are looking to find a way to help pay for her celebration of life. The family really needs something to help us, so we can let her go in peace and have some closure as well. She had a grandson who is eleven, who loved her very much, and he took it very hard when he found out his grandma passed, like he has in the past when any of his grandparents or any of his family has passed. For me, as his mother, I really need him to have some closure. I need my husband to have some closure for his mother. And I need my sister-in-law to have some closure for her mother. I also would like for my aunts-in-law and my husband and sister-in-law's aunts to be able to have some closure for their sister. She went so unexpectedly; this hit all of us hard. Right now, this is the only thing I can think of to maybe help out. She was a lovely lady. She brightened the room when anybody walked in. She would sit up at night when my son would come out of his room and just sit there and play with him. Listen to him talk for hours or just sit there and play with the cars or transformers with him for hours and not have a problem with it. He would go up to her and say, "Grandma, Grandma, you play with me?" "Yes, buddy, I'll play. What are we playing?" And then they would just sit there for hours and play. The rest of us would just sit there and watch them and watch TV with mom. Yes, we had our times when sometimes we didn't get along, but we got over it. But it's hard because all those memories are still there. We just wish we had more time with her. She left all the kids she called her grandbabies. My son's cousin Liam would come over and pick him up to go over and stay with them for the weekend, and that was considered him grandbaby because that's what she did; she loved everybody the same. All of Melvin's Aunt Bev's kids were considered her grandbabies in her eyes. She loved being able to sit and talk with her grandbabies. Even the ones she considered her grandbabies in her eyes, that's how special she was to everybody. And when she met my grandma and my mother, she liked them too. She liked everybody. She deserves a celebration of life just like everybody does when they pass away. It gives a family a way to grieve and let that person go. We, as a family, just want her to rest in peace. And we want to be able to let her go in peace. Thank you for reading my story.