Also, pray for James' family as they go through his funeral mass on Tuesday too. This is just not what parents of young children are supposed to have to go through. Keep them in your prayers and the other St Jude families that have such heavy hearts at this time too.
Back during the St Jude Marathon this past year I posted and told you about a young lady, Molly, who had collapsed and died after crossing the finish line after completing the half marathon. One of our team members, Reagan's grandmother, Barbara Key reached out to Molly's family recently and received a letter back from Molly's mother. Barbara would like to share that letter with all of us. It is so very touching and tells us a lot about this young remarkable lady. I am so touched that Barbara reached out to them the way she did. I must say it does not surprise me that she reached out, she is an amazing lady that we all came to love very much at the marathon this year. No wonder Reagan was so special, look at her family!!! Thank you Barbara for sharing this letter with us.
From: jan trauernicht
Date: January 24, 2010 3:07:06 PM CST
To:
Subject: Molly and Reagan
I received your very nice letter and wanted to let you know how much I appreciated it. You have my greatest sympathy. Reagan was a beautiful little girl and had a great smile. I have two granddaughters her age, one born 5/5/04 and one born 6/29/04. I can't imagine losing either one of them.
I would like to give you a little history about Molly and me and her family. Molly was born 10/25/77, the second of triplets, 2 minutes after her brother, Sam, and one minute before her sister, Katie. She also has a younger brother named Patrick. My husband, Lee, and I feel we have been blessed with such a wonderful family. It was rather unusual to have healthy triplets 32 years ago. Mine had absolutely no problems when they were born. All of my children were in the gifted program at school. Sam is a chemical engineer, Katie is a nurse practitioner, and Patrick is a dentist. I am a pediatric nurse working at Children's Mercy Hospital in KC. My husband is in sales. Molly had her master's in accounting and had a job she loved in St Louis. She never married but was a wonderful aunt to her 4 nieces and one nephew. She always thought she would find a wonderful man to marry and have children. She would not lower her standards just to get married. Because Molly wasn't married, we got to do so many more things together. We rarely went more than a month without seeing each other. We talked on the phone at least 3-4 times a week. Not only was she my daughter, she was one of my best friends. We went to Memphis together, arriving on Friday. It was a very ordinary trip but very enjoyable. We did some sight-seeing, watched the ducks march at the Peobody Hotel, did some shopping, and ate dinner with her friend and her husband. She paid for my dinner because this weekend was supposed to be her birthday present to me (my birthday was 12/1). Molly had a problem with her heart where the top chamber, the atrium, was beating too fast last January. The doctor performed a procedure and corrected the problem. She saw him twice and another cardiologist once after that. She was cleared for all actvity with no restrictions. I was told by her friend, who was with her, that she felt so good that she ran for a short time to cross the finish line. She had her medal and hugged her friend. Then she just collapsed. She had medical care immediately but could not be revived. We are still not sure exactly what caused her heart to stop beating.
Our losses are similar in so many ways and so different in so many others. Both of them were loved dearly. They both died way too soon, yours so much younger than mine. They both had so much more living to do and it is so hard to understand why they were taken when they were. All of us cry every day and hope that at some time, it will hurt less. I see children every day I work with such a variety of health problems ( I work in the recovery room). I cannot imagine the heartache those parents must feel when their children are sick and suffering. The only thing I can think is that God has a plan and, even though it doesn't make sense or seem fair, we must accept what He gives us. You had Reagan for five years so you have five years of memories to sustain you. Luckily, I had Molly for 32 years. Because of Molly's death, I have been in contact with so many wonderful people. It makes me feel good to know how giving and loving people can be.
My family plans to go to Memphis again this year and participate in the races. I walked the 5K last year and may have seen the signs for Reagan. You are so right when you say the people at St Jude are wonderful. I hope that with the continued efforts of the people doing the marathon, half-marathon, and 5K that there will be a cure for so many illnesses and other families will be spared the sorrow.
I know this is long but I really wanted to let you know that I appreciated hearing from you. The pictures you sent of Reagan were beautiful. We both have angels in heaven now. Jan Trauernicht
We have so much to be thankful for today, and so much to pray for too. I will post with updates and reports from both of the surgeries as I hear. Lift them up in prayer. GOD IS IN CONTROL!
BELIVE PRAYER WORKS~
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