Last Friday J's cousin, James, was killed in an avalanche while snowmobiling with family. James was an experienced snowmobiler and was in an area in which he was familiar. He had gone up ahead and when the rest of his party realized that they couldn't hear his snowmobile anymore, they went looking, only to find an avalanche area. It took them several hours to finally find him buried under ten feet of snow.
How incredibly tragic, and just a reminder that life is so precious. James was like an older brother to J (he was two years older). They grew up playing together--J was known as James' "caboose." J will be writing his own thoughts in a later post.
Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the viewing and the funeral for James (J and Zuri were able to go), but my heart was there with the family as we say goodbye for now.
One of my favorite memories of James was when we met up with him in St. Louis, Missouri on our way home from Georgia. James spent the summers installing security systems and we were able to have lunch with him before we arrived at my aunt and uncle's house. James, who was always full of energy, was excited to see us, and we spent over an hour just talking and joking around. It was one of those times when we didn't really do anything (except eat and talk), but the feeling of friendship and family was so strong.
James always had a smile and a zest for life. He was very involved with his kids and was always out playing with them. He was a friend to all who knew him. He will be greatly missed.
Dancing in a skit at a family reunion
Doing what he loved: snowmobiling and jumps
There has been a fund set up for James' family. If you would like to donate, you can do so here:
http://www.donationto.com/James-Childs-memorial-fund
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