The past week has been a rough one to say the least. I didn't really want to say anything to my friends or family, because they have their own stuff (most of which is exciting and wonderful) going on. My good friend Jenna was married last Saturday and my other fab friend Tory had her bachelorette party last weekend in Vegas. I am so happy for both of them and didn't want to ruin the mood, so I though I would just write about it now.
Last Wednesday afternoon while at a conference in Portland I received a call from a co-worker letting me know that there had been a car accident and one of our college interns had been killed. Words cannot describe how difficult it has been to not only grieve myself, but also be there for the 50+ youth that Nick worked with. Nick was a very talented 24 year old, just about to graduate from OSU and head to UO for grad school in the fall. I had been his mentor for the last two years and he had also worked for me in the Youth Center. His mom Kathy is a good friend of mine and also my youngest brother's kindergarten teacher. Kathy is and has been a single mom for along time and Nick is the oldest of 4 boys.
So as you can imagine it has been a really really rough week. We had Nick's service on Tuesday, which went really well and included a lot of extremely thoughtful tributes. But to see kids ages 5-18 have to understand this incredible tragedy was a moment that will stay with me forever. The kids were really strong, but some of the middle school boys were so heartbroken to see their being laid to rest. Moving forward has also proven to be really hard on my staff (myself included). His mom and oldest brother stopped by today and it was so comforting to see them, it is amazing how you don't really miss people until they are gone forever.
I am hopeful that Nick's younger brother, who graduates from High School in a few weeks will come and work with us this summer. They are all awesome boys and Nick loved them more than anything.
I should put a little disclaimer: Sorry if I haven't returned calls or I have been a little off lately, I have tried to be strong for my staff and students and by the time I get off work it takes all I have to make it home through my tears.
Love you guys, thanks for letting me vent.
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1 comment:
So sorry to hear about your friend and co-worker. It's tiring to hold it together when you're trying to hold everyone around you together. You're in my thoughts and prayers. (And, PS, you look beautiful by the way!!!)
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