A Death in the Family

I'm not sure I should blog about this. But it's so sad.

Several years ago I somehow managed to set in motion a series of steps that ended up causing the biggest family reunion in my family's history. In July of 2002 100s of relatives, few of whom I'd ever met, or heard of, descended on the Washington border town of Lynden.

The thing that led to this reunion was me making what is pretty much known as the most elaborate family history website on the Internet. During the course of making that website I learned my family history. Some of it was surprising, like my grandpa was a bootlegger. Some of what I learned was just a function of how dumb I can be. Like I didn't know that Aunt Agnes was my grandpa's sister. And I'd spent time with Aunt Agnes.

Well, during the period of gathering family info I learned of a cousin named Steve. He was a tall basketball star. He'd had some tough times battling depression. When Steve's cousin Kristi moved to Dallas I met her and heard more about her cousins.

This branch of my family suffered a shocking tragedy back in the 1980s when their Grandma, my Aunt Fanny, was brutally murdered. This led to my little sister becoming a lawyer.

So, my cousin Steve, whom I've never met, in October of 2002, got married to Bridget Bomberger. I remember getting an email about that, asking me to change the info on the list of family info.

I'll copy and paste why Bridget has been showing up on my webstats in the past day or so. I finally looked to find out why and was surprised. The photo above is of Bridget and Steve's baby who you'll read about below.........

I have posted a couple of updates on Bridgett Slotemaker, the young wife and mother in her 30's who found out in May of this year that she had Stage IV cancer. If you remember, June 23, her daughter, Chloe was born at 26 weeks weighing a mere 1 pound 2 oz. The doctors advised taking the baby early due to complications with Bridgett's chemotherapy. At 10:03 pm August 12, Bridgett went to be with the Lord. With her family by her side, she left her sick, physical body and now has a new glorious one. While it is a sad day, it is not a bad day for her (to steal the words of our former pastor!). However, my heart is just so sad for her husband, two year old daughter Gracie, parents, in-laws, friends, etc. who will not see her on this side of eternity. Above is a a picture of Chloe that I believe was taken shortly after she was born. Please pray for this precious little one, that I think currently weighs less than 1200 grams! At birth, she had a 70% chance of survival, but only about 20% chance of no complications. Her Daddy Steve has battled depression in the past and this devestation has great potential to set him back. I do not know this family, but I have been so touched as I have followed their story. Their faith and walk with the Lord although tested, has been more than inspiring. Bridgett's desire was that someone come to know Christ through this trial.