Gifford Family Update

I know it's cliche but this really does feel like the longest week of my life and I'm not even the one who lost a husband/father. (Read about the Gifford Family and their loss here.) We've been preparing for the funeral, arranging the family's transportation back to Washington State, where BJ will be buried. I still can't believe that a week ago Keani and I did our semi-weekly Costco/grocery trip and she mentioned that BJ hadn't been feeling well.

Both of us have boys in Cub Scouts and we'd had our first Rain-Gutter Regatta a few days before. It struck me as a bit odd that their son's boat wasn't ready yet. BJ was hugely involved in scouts and they always had something incredible prepared for Pinewood Derbies. I sent my son over to borrow some sandpaper from them and he told me that Keani and BJ's son needed help with is boat too.

I'm shaking as I write this. Looking back, I feel like I should have known something was seriously wrong when BJ didn't even feel up to attending the Regatta, let alone help work on their boat. Keani has been so good at stopping these "what ifs" as she calls them, reminding us that even if they'd known about the blood clot earlier, there probably wasn't anything we could have done. I still can't believe how strong she is, holding us all together when it seems like she'd be the one to fall apart.

The support we've seen has been wonderful! She has already been receiving some of the funds from the GoFundMe donations, which has allowed her to pay some of the funeral costs and to transport BJ back home to Washington. Keani asked me to give you all the following message:

"Thank you so much for all the love that has been shown to us. It's just been a comfort to see so many people rally around us to help us get through this time. It's been a huge blessing to us. All the thoughts and prayers and service... Even the smallest, thoughts and prayers have been a huge comfort." -Keani

You can still donate to the In Memory of BJ Gifford GoFundMe here.
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