Dear Jess,

Ten years. Hard to even believe Sweetie.

Last Thursday, about 268 of us gathered in your name, for your mission, at The Chandelier Ballroom in Hartford. Many tears were shed, for you and for others. Many hearts were lifted as we came together to presence love and end violence. Because of you.

People dug deep into their pockets and gave like crazy. 57 people signed up to volunteer, and that was only the hard copy envelopes, I haven’t even checked online yet. Some came up afterwards with exciting ideas that we can work on in 2024.

Though some gave a lot, my favorite donation was from the guy who put six rumpled up dollar bills in his envelope; I’m guessing it was everything he had.

Jessie, Autumn, and Melissa told their terrible dark stories of severe domestic violence and sexual assault with incredible courage and modeled for all of us how to emerge from such evil in the highest way, with honesty, conviction, wisdom, and Love. Hearing their stories, many lives will change for the better …. because of you.

Families I love who haven’t talked with each other in years took small steps Thursday and talked again, or at least sat near each other, because of the incredible power of forgiveness that we here are all still struggling to learn …. because of you.

Mom and I are apart further and longer than we’ve ever been, one in the north and one in the south, but our souls are one …. because of you.

Our love for each other isn’t always perfect or pretty, whose is? But our commitment to each other, to stick together through all of it, no matter what, that IS perfect …. because of you.

Jessie, Autumn and Melissa inspired us all Thursday night, with their growth, how they’ve reacted to trauma, how they’ve used darkness to get stronger and help others. You would’ve too, if only you had the chance. Sweetie, in life, you wanted to change the world. In death, you are.

Some modern physicists say that everything in the universe is connected by invisible bands of energy, or “strings”. I believe them …. because of you. Other physicists tell us that the math says there are actually twelve dimensions. If that turns out to be true, then I love you to the furthest corners of all of them, the ones I can sense and the ones I can’t. I love you to the end of time, Sweetie, and I don’t think even time ending can stop that.

Ben said it best Thursday, something like “I work with L>h because I love what they are doing, but I’d rather have my friend back.” But we can’t have you back, can we, not in this world anyway. So, we settle for second best, we settle for doing your work, we settle for doing what we can to make your life and your death somehow help others.

Still loving you my sweet baby girl, my fierce teenage social justice crusader, my strong and talented young woman, my warrior princess butterfly. Now and always.