Wait until they become dragonflies…
June marks a significant date as it is the month that Isabella lost her fight to neuroblastoma. This year will be 5 years since we lost her to this horrible disease on June 28th, 2012. The Santos family has been through their ups and downs in dealing with losing a daughter, sister, granddaughter, great-granddaughter, niece and cousin. But as you have most likely noticed, they have persevered… and they lead the push to fight for kids with cancer in Isabella’s honor. This month we will be sharing both the happy and raw times as we celebrate Isabella’s spirt and the legacy she left behind.
Wait until they become dragonflies…
“We are doing horrible things like talking to hospice about funeral homes, what to do if she dies in Disney, how to talk to our kids.. But I’m also getting moments last night where Isabella and I took a bath together and I washed her up and talked about all kinds of things like what animal we would like to be… she of course would be a bunny. I got her outand dried her hair and we cuddled on the couch. Hospice suggested a book called Dragonflies and Waterbugs to help talk about death to children. It’s a great book about this family of waterbugs who will occasionally crawl up a stem and not come back… even though they seemed very happy in their waterbug family. They made a pact that the next person that goes will promise to come back and tell what is up there. But when the next bug goes up the stem, she turns into a beautiful dragonfly. She loves to fly around and can see the waterbugs below. But when she tries to return, she can’t get through the water. Instead she will have to wait until someone else in her waterbug family decides to join her as a dragonfly so they can fly around together. I’ve only read Isabella and Grant the book but will use it as an example when the time comes.” – Isabella’s Mommy (June 3, 2012)
We bought a bulk stack of the Dragonflies and Waterbugs book and gave them to all of Isabella’s sweet friends and family to help everyone discuss her death. So now every time you see a dragonfly… don’t brush it away . It could be Isabella wanting to say hi.
Dragonflies and Waterbugs book: http://amzn.to/2s6Uu4F
We are excited to have 
If you know Isabella’s story well, you know the name Mrs. Chrissy. Mrs. Chrissy was Isabella’s best friend. Her quiet giving blew us away over the years from afar. For years, Mrs. Chrissy would get up at 5am to cook for the homeless on Saturday mornings, she volunteered each week at the free health clinic to assist in providing medical care for those in need, she fosters animals who need homes, she runs a diabetes camp in the summer for children and the list goes on and on. The best thing about Mrs. Chrissy is that she never tells you that she does these things. She does them because she honestly just has an amazing heart and wants no recognition for it. And let’s not forget the thing that has touched all of us at ISF the most.. her love of Isabella. She knew Isabella’s story was not going to end well but she still opened her heart to her and provided her with comfort, love and support like she were her own daughter. For us there is nothing better than people like Mrs. Chrissy and Isabella in this world and they should be recognized for what they provide to our communities. So many of us strive to be more like them each and every day.
