Prayers for a little fisherman

[Nimrod]

Saturday, October 23, 2010 8:43 PM, EDT


We invite you to join us in a celebration of Evan's life. His Memorial Service will take place this Tuesday, October 26th at 1:00pm at Epworth United Methodist Church in Gaithersburg, MD. Details are below. A reception will follow in the church fellowship hall.

Epworth United Methodist Church
9008 Rosemont Drive
Gaithersburg, MD 20877-1581
(301) 926-0424

In lieu of flowers, we ask that you consider making a donation to "Cookies for Kids Cancer." Please specify that it is honor of Evan Lindberg. The address is .................

Cookies for Kids' Cancer
31 Hoffmans Crossing Rd.
Califon, NJ 07830

God Bless,
Wendy and Gavin

[FreeBird Sportfishing]

God bless to you and your family, R.I.P Evan. You tried fighting the war the best you could, But eventually god must open his arms. Live easy up there and Rock and roll with the fish.

[Nimrod]

The memorial service was a touching tribute to a special boy. Words from his parents are posted below.

If you wish to post condolences on Evan's Caring Bridge site you can do so hear http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/ev...g/guestbook/10. I know his parents read them and they mean so much.


Wednesday, October 27, 2010 10:17 AM, EDT

Wendy and I would like to thank everyone who joined us yesterday for Evan's Memorial Service. It was simply breathtaking. Evan was there with us and he was so proud.

For those who were unable to attend, I have posted our words of rememberance from the service below. We will be in touch soon.

God Bless,
Gavin


GAVIN

"Wendy and I thank you so much for joining us in celebration of Evan today.

We know that he is grinning from ear-to-ear looking down right now. He always loved to entertain a crowd. And the bigger the crowd, the better.

In the neuroblastoma world, there is a tendency to refer to young patients as "Warriors." Wendy and I always hated that descriptor. Although his courage and bravery were unmatched, Evan was not a Warrior. He was the sweetest boy that God ever put on the earth.


"Sweet Evan" was how countless people referred to him. Wendy and I loved how frequently people would use that phrase, because that is exactly who he was - "Sweet Evan."

Evan was also a teacher. A teacher with a kind soul. Just a few weeks ago,the grandmother of another patient at Sloan-Kettering offered to play with him while we went in to meet with the doctors. Evan pulled out the board game Candyland. The woman had not played in decades so Evan taught her how the game worked. She was desperately trying to let Evan win but ended up crossing the finish line first. She immediately made up a story about how she had moved forward incorrectly and had to move back several spaces behind Evan. Without hesitation, Evan looked at her and said "No, you do not have to do that, you won, congratulations", and then he reached out his hand and shook hers. The woman said she had never seen anything like it and that she will never forget it. Wendy and were blessed to see it everyday.

Speaking of teaching, Evan went to preschool and kindergarden here at Epworth. He absolutely loved it. He loved his friends, he loved his teachers, and he loved the playground. It became a part of him.

Wendy and I do not understand why Evan had to endure so much. In fact, I do not want to know because there is no possible explanation that could make any sense. In addition to mourning the loss of our special boy, we mourn the loss of what he was destined to become. He was absolutely brimming with potential. He was special and unique in every way imaginable and he was going to do great things for this world. Of that, Wendy and I have no doubt. We are left with the belief that he will still do great things, just from a different place.


Wendy and I have a favorite songwriter who, in one of her songs asks the question, "is this the type of pain from which we don't recover?"

We have been wondering what the answer is to that question for us. We will always grieve for Evan, but I think the answer is we will recover from this pain because Evan is no longer in pain. His relief is our relief.

The three of us were a team. But truth be told, Wendy was Evan's everything. Mommy, nurse, playmate, and best friend. She was with him around the clock for 7 years and it was impossible for him to have been any happier. He never knew he was sick. He never knew he had this horrific illness. He only knew that whatever the day had in store, good or bad, his Mommy would be by his side. He would frequently tell Wendy that she was the best Mommy ever. Truer words have never been spoken.

A few weeks ago while putting Evan to bed, I told him how proud I was to be his daddy. After a second or two of thought, he said in his endearing, matter-of-fact way, "well if you like it, then it's your life." He was so right. I will always be his proud daddy."


WENDY


"Thank you all for being here.

I want to share a story with you about Evan. At this time, in this place. My faith has been more than shaken during the last 4 years…from knowing how much my mother suffered from cancer before she passed 2 years ago this month, to watching our only son suffer from a different, though equally unrelenting cancer.

The night before Evan passed, I lay down beside him just to talk to him. We hadn’t had any sort of communication from him in 4 days. I hadn’t even seen his beautiful blue eyes in that time either. I talked to him about the things we would typically talk about. Somehow, in the natural flow of the one-sided conversation, I told him that By the way, if you happen to see God at any point, it’s ok to go to him…or her…or whatever God is. You will have to tell me! At that very moment he reached out his hand to me. I took it and he actually held my hand as I spoke. He had not given us any indication that he heard anything we had said in recent days and suddenly he was holding my hand! I told him that he could hang out with God until Mommy got there. I told him that God is good and he will keep him safe. I said I would come get him just like I came to get him after kindergarten every day. I told him that I always loved to come and get him because I really missed him when we were apart. I told him that I loved him so much and that he was my angel face, which I had called him since birth. After a few minutes he let go of my hand. I told him that I was glad he let go first.

I miss him so much my heart hurts. I am so proud to be the Mommy of such an amazing and inspiring little boy."

[Nimrod]

From Evan's Father Gavin.....

"Hello Again -

Wendy and I want to thank everyone for your outpouring of love and support during this very difficult time. We recently returned home after a few days away. It would have been too painful to spend Halloween (which is also Wendy's birthday) and my birthday (Nov. 2nd) in the house. So we traveled south to Kingsmill Golf Resort in historic Williamsburg, VA. A curious thing happened when we arrived. There are hundreds of guest rooms in several buildings spread across the Kingsmill property. We were taken to the one room in the one building that directly overlooks the 7th green. When we walked out on the balcony and saw the #7 flag and the beautiful James River directly behind (see photo above) we felt that our 7 year-old son was with us.

When we pulled into our neighborhood on the day we returned we immediately noticed every single yard in the subdivision had a pink flamingo in it. A great show of solidarity and support from our wonderful neighbors.

This is as hard as you can imagine. Our house is not the same - nothing is the same - without Evan. We struggle everyday. At the same time we are committed to honoring our special boy by making a difference in the lives of neuroblastoma patients and families. We will provide more details on our plans soon. For now, I am pleased to announce that I have been appointed to the New Approaches to Neuroblastoma Therapy Advisory Council. NANT is a consortium of leading researchers and clinicians at 14 children's hospitals and academic centers in the U.S. The organization supports research and conducts clinical trials aimed at improving the survival rate for kids with this horrific disease. I look forward to helping advance this critical work.

Unfortunately, we are constantly reminded of how urgent the need is for better treatments .............young heroes Samuel, Ethan and Elizabeth joined Evan in Heaven in recent days. Please pray for their families. Also, please continue to pray for all the kids who are still in the fight. Our friends Nick Franca, Jake Miller and Ryan Reardon need some divine intervention, as do so many others.

With Hope-
Gavin"

[MyDixiewreck]

I hope and pray your research can help others. I am so sorry, and saddened by the news of Evans passing. I know the feeling of an empty house, keep your spirit strong, keep Evan with you each and every day. Time will eventually lessen the severity, your heart will always feel the emptiness. Please, direct your energy towards your research. Your son was an inspiration to many, please remember to live life with a purpose as mundane as others may see that purpose, if it is true to your heart you embrace it! May the Good Lord bless and watch over your family during your time of struggle, may triumph rise from the tragedy, my hopes and best wishes are with you, I didn't come back to this story as I was aware the inevitable was taking place. Again, deeply sorry for what you have endured, may the good Lord bless and watch over each and every one of you and I pray that Evan has found eternal peace .

[Nimrod]

The latest from Evan's parents about the foundation they have started in his honor:

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/evanlindberg

Hello Everyone:

Wendy and I are very excited to announce the launch of The Evan’s Victory Against Neuroblastoma Foundation website!

Please visit www.theevanfoundation.org for all the details on our mission, leadership, upcoming kick-off event, and how you can contribute and support the cause.

We hope you will take a second and sign-up as a "Friend of the Foundation" on the site. We look forward to seeing many of you at EVANFest on September 17th in Gaithersburg, MD!

With Hope-

Gavin