'I was a survivor and I LOVED my life': Young mother writes heartbreaking obituary for herself before she passes away after long battle with cancer
- Beth O'Rourke, 44, of Paxton, Massachusetts, has spent the past 7 years fighting stage four biliary cancer
- She passed away on April 16, and wrote her own obituary
- The mother of Courtney, 11, and Seamus, 8, called herself a 'survivor' and said she 'loved' life
- A page has now been created to raise money for her children's educations
A young mother wrote a heartbreaking obituary for herself before she passed away after a years long battle with cancer.
Beth
O'Rourke, 44, of Paxton, Massachusetts, has spent the past 7 years
fighting stage four biliary cancer, and on April 16, the mother of
Courtney, 11, and Seamus, 8, lost that fight.
But as she stated in her obituary; 'I was a survivor.'
Beth O'Rourke (above with husband
Brendan and children Courtney and Seamus), 44, has spent the past 7
years fighting stage four biliary cancer and passed away April 16
Beth (above with Brendan) wrote her own obituary
'I
died Thursday, April 16, 2015 surrounded by family, in the arms of my
husband and 'anam cara', Brendan Patrick O'Rourke,' she wrote in the obituary.
Anam cara means soul mate in Gaelic.
She
then went on to acknowledge all those she loved so much in her life,
and then express just how happy she was, even though she was gone.
'I
LOVED my life. I loved a long run, to sit quietly by the lake, to read
and dance and sing and be silly with our children,' she wrote.
'We
loved watching summer storms blow across the water. I loved to chat and
laugh with my sisters and friends, until tears ran down our legs!'
In the end though, she focused on her two children and her husband.
'Of
all the things I did in this life, nothing compared to being with
Brendan and our children. I fought every day to stay alive and to be
with them. No person could ever ask for a more loving and supportive
husband, always my champion, always,' she said.
'I
enjoyed every moment we shared; the great ones, the sad ones, the easy
and the hard. I pray they have learned to feel the deep sense of faith
that I shared. No matter where this journey brings me next, I will
forever carry their love with me, as I am sure there is a piece of me
that will forever remain with them.'
As for her own life, she said she hoped to be remembered 'with laughter, love and a good pint.'
Beth and Brendan are seen above on their wedding day
Beth dancing with her father in an old family photo
Jim
Heald, the owner of the Heald & Chiampa funeral home and a longtime
friend of Beth, says he was not surprised at all she wrote her own
obituary.
'She was a planner, and it was in her best efforts to prepare herself and her family for what was coming,' he told ABC News.
'Being
in the first person is very different. I write them for the family and
she did it firsthand. It's absolutely magnificent.'
He
then added; 'In that obituary she was teaching. She so eloquently says,
"Cancer loses grace and love wins." It was so profound and so true
Brendan also thought his wife's message was magnificent.
'It's pretty amazing to think that someone could write that before passing away. It's pretty amazing,' he said.
'Beth was amazing.'
'Beth was amazing,' said Brendan of his wife
Beth is seen getting her nursing degree above
In an interview with Today, Brendan once again praised his wife.
'She was so powerful,' he said.
'Most
people, up until very recently, didn't even know she was sick, even
though she'd been through multiple surgeries and [chemotherapy]
treatments. She always had a positive outlook. She always cared more for
everybody else first.'
He
also said that in addition to writing her obituary she planned the
entire funeral so no one else would have to worry about anything after
she was gone.
Now family members have set up a GoFundMe page to try and fund her children's education, and help out Brendan, who met his wife when the two were just 14-years-old.
Already $30,000 has been raised, with the hopes of making it to $100,000 from Brendan and the children.
'This is a story about a love that will live forever and will never fade or waver,' the page says of Beth.
'Her love is like the wind, we can't see it but we can feel it every single day.'
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