It is already two months since Erin's Celebration of Life - a joyous occasion where some 1000 people - a cross-section of every walk of our lives -gathered together in memory of our beautiful daughter. It took some courage to stand up and share how our child touched our and others' lives just 2 weeks after her accident. However, we have been deeply moved by how many observed that it was a 'profound' and affirming event. All who spoke to us afterwards said that they left feeling uplifted rather than sad and that Erin's life had been honoured in all its glory by all those who contributed.
For those of you who did not attend, we received this account which was written by a friend and sent to her friend's family as a herald to the new year. We share it with you with our friend's blessing so that if you did not attend you can join hands in remembering a short but remarkable life in this special ceremony.
''I would like to share with you our experience of the Celebration of Life for Erin Moore. I attended, with some 1000 people who came to support the family in the tragic loss of their little girl, Erin.
The Moore family are from South Africa and the UK, immigrants to Canada - like so many of us . They are both highly qualified, professional people. News of the accident was reported through the national and local media; it touched thousands of people and I know I speak for many when I say that all through the festivities of Christmas & the New Year, it was never far from mind, a sickening reminder, a physical pit of pain in the stomach; how does any parent deal with such a senseless, tragic loss of a child ... there are just no words. Erin has one sibling - an older brother, Cameron - 10 years old.
Her Celebration of Life, held at Mulgrave School, had standing room only. I want to tell you a little about the event, because it was remarkable and left me with a few thoughts I want to share with you. It was not a religious ceremony but it was a deeply spiritual service beginning with Erin's grandfather, The Rev. Dr Michael Moore, who said the opening prayer. In his old, quavering, anglican accent, he set the theme for the whole service. He invited us not to remember Erin as she was but to see Erin as she is now: living and joyfully alive. The whole service was about looking up and looking ahead with faith and hope, continuing to believe that life is good. One by one, people came onto stage and shared stories, poems and songs about Little Erin: her school teacher, piano teacher, her Brownies and Sparks leader, her soccer coach, her Godfather from Idaho and both of her parents - even a most beautiful poem written by John Weston, Federal MP for West Vancouver and the Sea-to-Sky.
What emerged was the picture of a little girl with remarkable tenacity, independence of spirit and an insatiable appetite for life; determined, kind, joyful. Words and phrases used to describe her were: trailblazer,' 'she sparkled', 'she lived in the here and now', 'infectious laughter', 'eccentric dress-style', 'as tough as nails and as sweet as candy'. The photos that cycled on the overhead were of a round-faced, pig-tailed, cherry-cheeked, freckle-nosed, mischievous little girl who hated to have her hair brushed! The music began with Erin's favourite song and went on to include "Somewhere Over the Rainbow' and 'What a Wonderful World' by Israel Kamakawiwo, "My Favourite Things' from the Sound of Music and ‘O Come, O Come Emmanuel - God with Us’ sung by Mulgrave’s choir. At various times in the service, the audience was laughing out loud, applauding, jumping up and down, singing along and of course, grieving openly - sometimes all at the same time. Both parents spoke, Erin’s Mom, Elizabeth, at the beginning and the Dad, Mike, at the end. Her mother said that Erin had left the world in the same way that she entered it: under the sky. She was born in the hospital car park in Cambridge, UK, on a cold, clear, sunny day in January and she died under the same sky, on the side of a mountain, by a stream, with the sun in her face and the wind in her hair, just 7 years and 11 months later.
Her Father's speech (Mike) touched everyone profoundly; he would often call her "My Little Bubble of Joy," and for the many children in the audience he likened it to playing the Mario video games: when a player is destroyed, they float above the action in a bubble until another player jumps up and pops the bubble; and then they can rejoin the game. He wished it was that easy to bring Erin back but instead he asked the whole audience to get to their feet and to jump up - three times - to pop the bubble over their heads and to feel the JOY come flooding down. So the whole crowded theatre, grandpas to grandbabies, was jumping up and down to pop bubbles; Mike hoped it made us feel better; he said it made him feel better just to watch us!!
On a much more sombre note, he went on to say that he couldn't explain why Erin had been taken; he could see no purpose in her death, no reason or any greater good in her being gone from the world. But that she was gone. He went on to state in very simple terms that in spite of this, he believed in God; in Jesus Christ, the Son of God and in the Holy Spirit. He knows he will see Erin again. In being so simple and under-stated, it was incredibly powerful witness. With that, they played a video of Erin which featured her infectious laughter, her love of food and the great outdoors, her sparkly shoes and then, this song to which they asked everyone to meditate on the messages and meaning they could take from Erin's life.
There was no traditional 'Order of Service'; just a card handed out with a photo of Erin on which they invited everyone to share a thought or a message they had learned from her life; to take away or to leave behind. Here are just a few of 'messages' that were offered:
Celebrate the here and now
Be a trailblazer: Wear your red high heels and let your sparkle shine
Community, friends and family matter more than anything
Hold your children close ...
Life is Good
Again and again they thanked people for their support and caring; and openly asked for our love, support and comfort in the days, months and years ahead; they specifically asked people to stay in touch via an email address they have set up in Erin's name [email protected] The hiking trail on which she died will be named after her, as will a set of monkey bars at her school in West Vancouver. The celebration finished with an African proverb:
"You can get ahead by leaving first. But you can go further by going together."
Let your sparkle shine; know joy; let ‘Oh What a Wonderful World!’ be your theme tune for 2015!
For those of you who did not attend, we received this account which was written by a friend and sent to her friend's family as a herald to the new year. We share it with you with our friend's blessing so that if you did not attend you can join hands in remembering a short but remarkable life in this special ceremony.
''I would like to share with you our experience of the Celebration of Life for Erin Moore. I attended, with some 1000 people who came to support the family in the tragic loss of their little girl, Erin.
The Moore family are from South Africa and the UK, immigrants to Canada - like so many of us . They are both highly qualified, professional people. News of the accident was reported through the national and local media; it touched thousands of people and I know I speak for many when I say that all through the festivities of Christmas & the New Year, it was never far from mind, a sickening reminder, a physical pit of pain in the stomach; how does any parent deal with such a senseless, tragic loss of a child ... there are just no words. Erin has one sibling - an older brother, Cameron - 10 years old.
Her Celebration of Life, held at Mulgrave School, had standing room only. I want to tell you a little about the event, because it was remarkable and left me with a few thoughts I want to share with you. It was not a religious ceremony but it was a deeply spiritual service beginning with Erin's grandfather, The Rev. Dr Michael Moore, who said the opening prayer. In his old, quavering, anglican accent, he set the theme for the whole service. He invited us not to remember Erin as she was but to see Erin as she is now: living and joyfully alive. The whole service was about looking up and looking ahead with faith and hope, continuing to believe that life is good. One by one, people came onto stage and shared stories, poems and songs about Little Erin: her school teacher, piano teacher, her Brownies and Sparks leader, her soccer coach, her Godfather from Idaho and both of her parents - even a most beautiful poem written by John Weston, Federal MP for West Vancouver and the Sea-to-Sky.
What emerged was the picture of a little girl with remarkable tenacity, independence of spirit and an insatiable appetite for life; determined, kind, joyful. Words and phrases used to describe her were: trailblazer,' 'she sparkled', 'she lived in the here and now', 'infectious laughter', 'eccentric dress-style', 'as tough as nails and as sweet as candy'. The photos that cycled on the overhead were of a round-faced, pig-tailed, cherry-cheeked, freckle-nosed, mischievous little girl who hated to have her hair brushed! The music began with Erin's favourite song and went on to include "Somewhere Over the Rainbow' and 'What a Wonderful World' by Israel Kamakawiwo, "My Favourite Things' from the Sound of Music and ‘O Come, O Come Emmanuel - God with Us’ sung by Mulgrave’s choir. At various times in the service, the audience was laughing out loud, applauding, jumping up and down, singing along and of course, grieving openly - sometimes all at the same time. Both parents spoke, Erin’s Mom, Elizabeth, at the beginning and the Dad, Mike, at the end. Her mother said that Erin had left the world in the same way that she entered it: under the sky. She was born in the hospital car park in Cambridge, UK, on a cold, clear, sunny day in January and she died under the same sky, on the side of a mountain, by a stream, with the sun in her face and the wind in her hair, just 7 years and 11 months later.
Her Father's speech (Mike) touched everyone profoundly; he would often call her "My Little Bubble of Joy," and for the many children in the audience he likened it to playing the Mario video games: when a player is destroyed, they float above the action in a bubble until another player jumps up and pops the bubble; and then they can rejoin the game. He wished it was that easy to bring Erin back but instead he asked the whole audience to get to their feet and to jump up - three times - to pop the bubble over their heads and to feel the JOY come flooding down. So the whole crowded theatre, grandpas to grandbabies, was jumping up and down to pop bubbles; Mike hoped it made us feel better; he said it made him feel better just to watch us!!
On a much more sombre note, he went on to say that he couldn't explain why Erin had been taken; he could see no purpose in her death, no reason or any greater good in her being gone from the world. But that she was gone. He went on to state in very simple terms that in spite of this, he believed in God; in Jesus Christ, the Son of God and in the Holy Spirit. He knows he will see Erin again. In being so simple and under-stated, it was incredibly powerful witness. With that, they played a video of Erin which featured her infectious laughter, her love of food and the great outdoors, her sparkly shoes and then, this song to which they asked everyone to meditate on the messages and meaning they could take from Erin's life.
There was no traditional 'Order of Service'; just a card handed out with a photo of Erin on which they invited everyone to share a thought or a message they had learned from her life; to take away or to leave behind. Here are just a few of 'messages' that were offered:
Celebrate the here and now
Be a trailblazer: Wear your red high heels and let your sparkle shine
Community, friends and family matter more than anything
Hold your children close ...
Life is Good
Again and again they thanked people for their support and caring; and openly asked for our love, support and comfort in the days, months and years ahead; they specifically asked people to stay in touch via an email address they have set up in Erin's name [email protected] The hiking trail on which she died will be named after her, as will a set of monkey bars at her school in West Vancouver. The celebration finished with an African proverb:
"You can get ahead by leaving first. But you can go further by going together."
Let your sparkle shine; know joy; let ‘Oh What a Wonderful World!’ be your theme tune for 2015!