Dear Friends and Family....

Today Diana and I made funeral/burial arrangements for Rachel. Her funeral will be held on Monday, May 22nd, at 10am at Assumption Catholic Church, Topeka. For those of you who can make it the church is located downtown at 8th and Jackson Streets. It sits across the street just north of the State Capitol Building. A warning... parking is never an easy thing in this area.

A Rosary and greeting will also be held at Penwell Gabel Funeral Home in Topeka on Sunday, May 21, at 7pm. Penwell-Gabel is located at 1321 SW 10th.

Burial will be at Mt Hope Cemetery, two blocks from our house. Rachel, Diana and I used to take walks through the cemetery. It is a beautiful old place with a working bell tower that Rachel played in all the time.... she called it her castle.

A few have asked about memorials. We have suggested two:

--- Assumption School, 735 Jackson St, Topeka, KS 66603
--- St. David's Episcopal Church Childrren's Choir, 3916 SW 17th, Topeka, KS 66604

Diana and the kids are members of Assumption Catholic Church and all of the kids were students at the school (Emily will graduate from Assumption on Friday). I am a member of St David's and Rachel sang in the children's choir while I am a member of the adult choir.

We realize that most of those who read this will be unable to attend but your presence in thought and prayer at that time will be just as precious to us.

This is my last Rachel Sowers email.... not the one I had intended to write.

Her last words as they put her under for an unsuccessful attempt to put tubes in her to increase her oxygen were two carefree words: "Night Night."

She was smiling and we laughed as she faded away under the anesthetic only to awaken in a better place. She had no idea of the severity of the situation... blessedly neither did her parents... fully.

We were blessed with the presence of a friend from my college days, P----, who lives in Kansas City metro and had stopped by Children's Mercy to see how Rachel was doing. She is an M.D/anesthesiologist and she stayed on as a valued friend who translated things being said to us and asked questions that we could not ask.... she said that she just "had this feeling" that she should stop by.... and showed up just before the whole thing started. She and her daughter made sure that we made it back to Topeka where the other kids were waiting late that night.

Rachel's death at the hospital brought down nurse after nurse from the oncology ward upstairs.... then another amazing thing happened. One of the bone marrow doctors, the physicians assistant, the social worker, recreation therapist, nurse clinician, psychologist.... people who worked within the oncology department **who had already gone home for the day** came back to the hospital! They came rushing in, one by one to hug and cry and pray.

The poor Catholic priest who showed up for the last rites was very much taken aback when he walked into the small I.C.U. room (expecting to find grieving parents) to find all these people (with some of the nurses and the intern whom we'd known from the beginning) crammed inside. I was standing next to him as he stumbled through his prayer book, lost his place... and kept glancing up at all the people around the bed. It took him a while to figure out who the parents were.

We feel the prayful presence of all of you surrounding us too... we have also felt it through this day of decisions and difficult tasks that we must take on.

Rachel Diana Sowers.... our daughter and sister.... was a surprise... from the moment we found out that Diana was pregnant through seven years of joy and sorrow. Her life was oh so very short if we count by days and years... but so full if considered by experiences and those who came to love her. I've said before that she taught us a lot about life, courage and love. My hope is that she also touched you, whether you knew her personally, or through these messages... and that your life was also enriched.

Many, many thanks to you all for giving me the release of writing these messages to you. God bless and keep you all.

Rachel had a little photo album that she filled with photos. On the front cover it says it all.....

LIVE, LAUGH, LOVE

Bill, Diana, Kenny, Amanda and Emily Sowers