Happy Valentine's Day Matt 
God Bless 

New Year's Resolutions For Bereaved Parents


I resolve...

That I will grieve as much, and for as long, as I feel like grieving, and that I will not let others put a time table on my grief.

That I will grieve in whatever way I feel like grieving, and I will ignore those who try to tell me what I should or should not be feeling and how I should or should not be behaving.

That I will cry whenever and wherever I feel like crying, and that I will not hold back my tears just because someone else feels I should be "brave" or "getting better" or "healing by now."

That I will talk about my child as often as I want to, and that I will not let others turn me off just because they can't deal with their own feelings.

That I will not expect family and friends to know how I feel, understanding that one who has not lost a child cannot
possibly know how it feels.

That I will not blame myself for my
child's death, and that I will constantly remind myself that I did the best job of parenting I could possibly have done.
But when feelings of guilt are
overwhelming, I will remind myself that this is a normal part of the grief process and it, too, will pass.

That I will not be afraid or ashamed to seek professional help if I feel it is necessary.

That I will commune with my child at least once a day in whatever way feels comfortable and natural to me, and that I won't feel compelled to explain this communion to others or to justify or
even discuss it with them.

That I will try to eat, sleep, and exercise every day in order to give my body the strength it will need to help me cope with my grief.

To know that I am not losing my mind, and I will remind myself that loss of memory, feelings of disorientation, lack of energy, and a sense of vulnerability are all normal parts of the grief process

To know that I will heal, even though it may take a long time.

To let myself heal and not to feel guilty about feeling better.

To remind myself that the grief process is circuitous - that is, I will not make steady upward progress. And when I find myself slipping back into the old moods of despair and depression, I will tell myself that 'slipping backward" is
also a normal part of the grief process and these moods, too, will pass.

To try to be happy about something for some part of every day, knowing that at
first, I may have to force myself to think cheerful thoughts, so eventually they
may become a habit

That I will reach out at times, and try to help someone else, knowing that helping others will help me to get over my depression.

That even though my child is dead, I will opt for life, knowing that is what my child would want me to do. 
WE LOVE YOU ALL, CHARLENE AND GARRET NEACE

KAY, I PRAY FOR YOU TO FIND PEACE IN YOUR HEART EVERYDAY. MATT HURTS NO MORE. HE IS IN A BETTER PLACE THAN THIS WORLD. HE SUPS WITH JESUS NOW. HOLD ON TO THE FACT THAT HE IS ALREADY HOME.
LOVE YOU, CHARLENE AND GARRET

Sandi,

I was looking at the card you gave me on Saturday while I received your email.  I checked out the site to learn more.  I am truly sorry for your loss.  My wife and I don't have children yet but are thinking about starting a family.  I can't imagine anything worse than lossing a child pre-maturely.  I recently went to Oregon to be with my dying Grandmother.  It was very surreal and I would do it again if I had to.

The comfort I have and I believe you have is that our loved ones are in a place that is so fantastic we can't even fathom it.  You will be re-united with your son as I with my Grandma when the time is right. 

Imagine the pure joy you and Matthew will share on that day!

Thank you for sharing Matthew's life.

Donavon

My dearest Matt, I battle the 5 companies to find out who killed you and after 26 months it finally came out. I now know who killed you. I am weak and couldn't continue the fight. I am so sorry Matt, I tried. my shattered heart could not take any more of the fighting and allow these strangers tear you apart with no just cause. You did what you were told to do at your job but where killed by the hands of another. I only wish and pray that one day they have to pay for what he has done. I will someday get my day to let him know just how it feels to lose a child. And may his nights be sleepless and his days long. I hope he never forgets the day he killed you.

Matt may you now rest, my angel son with all my love forever.

As long as I live so shall you

mom of an angel

Don’t tell me you know how I feel,
You haven’t walked in my shoes.
Don’t tell me I have another child to love,
That won’t bring back the son that I lost.
Don’t tell me to get out of the house,
Maybe I just want to stay here and mourn
for my lost son.
Don’t tell me it will get better,
From my point of view it will never be better.
Don’t tell me it could be worse,
How much worse than this could it be.
Don’t tell me to trust in God,
I do trust in Him and love Him,
That won’t bring my son back
Don’t tell me to eat and take care of myself,
Maybe the food won’t stay down.
Maybe I don’t care about myself right now.
Don’t tell me to try to get some sleep,
Don’t you think I would love to sleep?
Don’t tell me all this,
You haven’t walked in my shoes.
Do tell me you care.
Do tell me you love me.
Do tell me you will be there if I need you.
If I need to just talk to call you.
Or better yet, you call me.
Just listen, that’s all, just listen.
Do let me cry.
Do let me mourn.
Do let me experience this
terrible loss that I feel.
Do pray for me.
That is all I ask.

God Bless you & your Family Matt

MATT,
       SECOND CHRISTMAS WITHOUT YOU. ETHAN AND I MISS YOU SO MUCH. YOU GOT SO EXCITED SHOPPING FOR THE HOLIDAY. YOU ALMOST COULDNT WAIT TO GIVE YOUR PRESENTS TO EVERYONE. YOU COULDNT SLEEP THE NIGHT BEFOR AND YOU COULD NOT WAIT TO EAT WHAT YOUR MOM COOKED. YOU WENT CRAZY SHOPPING FOR ETHAN. EVERY TOY YOU SAW YOU WANTED TO GET FOR HIM. YOU ALWAYS HAD THE BIGGEST SMILE ON YOUR FACE. THAT JUST SHOWED HOW MUCH YOU LOVED THAT LITTLE BOY. WHEN SANTA  AKED HIM WHAT HE WANTED FOR CHRISTMAS HE TOLD HIM HE WANTED TO FLY TO HEAVEN TO SEE DADDY MATT SO HE COULD SEE HOW MANY BIG MUSCLES HE HAD. I TOLD HIM LATER THAT YOU COULD SEE THEM NOW BECAUSE THERE ARE HOLES IN THE FLOORS OF HEAVEN. GOSH MATT, EVERYDAY IS A STRUGGLE. I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERYDAY 10 TIMES A DAY. I CRY WHEN I HEAR A SONG THAT REMINDS ME OF YOU, OR WHEN I SMELL YOU COLOGNE ON SOMEONE, LOOKING AT YOUR PICTURES OF JUST THINKING ABOUT US. WE MISS YOU SO MUCH. YOU NEED TO BE HERE TO SEE ETHAN GROW OLDER. YOU PROMISED  WE WOULD GROW OLD TOGETHER. YOU PROMISED!!! EVERYONE KEEPS TELLING ME GOD SAID IT WAS JUST YOUR TIME TO GO AND THAT THERE IS A REASON FOR EVERYTHING. WELL I JUST DONT SEE IT. I DONT BELIEVE IT. I KNOW IF YOU WERE STANDING HERE TODAY IN FRONT OF EVERYONE AND YOU WERE ASKED IF YOU WANTED TO STAY OR GO. YOU WOULD CHOOSE STAY. YOU HAD NOT FINISHED YOUR LIFE, YOU WERE NOT DONE AND YOU HAD SO MUCH MORE TO DO ANDSEE. YOU WERE TAKEN!!! SOMEONE KILLED YOU AND IT WAS NOT YOUR TIME. I THINK SOMETIMES PEOPLE SAY THAT TO TRY TO EASE MY MIND, BUT THEY DONT KNOW WHATS ITS LIKE TO HAVE YOUR SOULMATE THE LOVE OF YOUR LIFE AND (DADDY) TAKEN AWAY SO IT IS SO EASY FOR THEM TO SAY. THIS HAS ALL CHANGE OUR LIVES FOREVER AND TO BE COMPLETLY HONEST I HAVE LOST MY FAITH!! I KNOW YOU ARE WATCHING. TRY TO KEEP ME SMILING. I LOVE YOU FOREVER AND ALWAYS.. YOUR GIRL ....SARAH