Dear family and friends,

We would like to invite you to join us to remember and honor Kelly Langs. We will be gathering on Saturday, April 6^th 2013, from 10:00am to 12:00pm at Arlington Garden in Pasadena, California.

We would love for you to share your memories and stories of Kelly. This is a celebration of her life. It is her desire that you come dressed comfortably and to reflect the feeling of springtime.

Arlington Garden is a dedicated public garden. It is a peaceful place, one that offers simple beauty and a reflective nature. More importantly, the garden is truly beautiful in the spring when the wildflowers are in their full glory. Please be prepared to walk along gentle, but rustic paths. There are many quiet spots to sit and enjoy. Light refreshments will be provided.

 

If traveling is not an option, we hope you will join us and be with Kelly on this day in spirit. For those of you who can travel for this occasion, we look forward to being with you and having the opportunity to meet many of you who Kelly held so dear to her heart.

PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU PLAN TO ATTEND.                                                                                                                         There are two ways you can respond to this invitation:                                                                                                               If you CLICK HERE: http://new.evite.com/l/T6TUKONNGA                                                                                                           this link will take you to an evite invitation. Where it says, “Will you attend?” you will need to click one of the options: “YES,” “MAYBE,” or “NO.” You will be prompted to enter your name, your email, and the number of people in your party.                                                                                                                                                                                   ~ OR ~                                                                                                                                                                                                     You can send Lisa an email at: lisa(dot)langs(at)usu(dot)edu to inform us of your plans to attend or not attend.

Arlington Garden                                                                                                                                                                                      275 Arlington Drive Pasadena, CA 91105                                                                                                                                      (The garden is located between So. Orange Grove Blvd. and So. Pasadena Ave.)

In lieu of flowers, we would like to suggest a donation to further the research of Cystic Fibrosis,                            http://www.cff.org/GetInvolved/ManyWaysToGive/MakeADonation/                                                                               and may a Cure be Found.

If you have any questions, you can contact                                                                                                                                 Lisa at: (435) 760-9071 or email her at: lisa(dot)langs(at)usu(dot)edu;                                                                                     ~ OR~                                                                                                                                                                                                       Susie at: (626) 799-5503 or email her at: langssusan(at)gmail(dot)com.

We hope everyone can feel Kelly’s presence in their life now and forever.

A moment of reflection and silence in honor of Kelly Langs as she prepares herself to donate her organs to others.

What is about to take place, the gift of life, is something that Kelly has always held very dear to her heart, and is something she wanted you to hear.

The following are Kelly’s sentiments she wrote on her blog on Dec 2, 2011, prior to her receiving her own gift of organ donation by someone else on Dec 6, 2012.

True Beauty in Organ Donation:
Organs are precious and they have the ability to keep giving. … It’s the cycle of life, and we as humans have an amazing choice to make in that hour of our end – to give the gift of life to someone next to you who needs it.

It’s not like any other gift you’ll ever have the chance to give again. It’s a onetime thing, and the most precious gift of all, one that you could very well be asking for one day yourself! We’re all human, we all function on organs and we’re all part of this cycle of life – together.

I’m on the transplant list, waiting for lungs. I’m also a registered organ donor in case there’s anything of quality and strength that can be passed on. I know my eyes are awesome, 20/20 vision! So someone will be able to see for the first time when I leave this body. That truly makes me happy and makes me feel like I’ve chosen the ultimate human gift!

You can give the gift of life too.
In honor of Kelly we have set up a way for you to become a registered organ donor.  If you feel you have learned from Kelly’s journey this is something you should consider.  To learn more about becoming an organ donor please click here: http://www.donatelifecalifornia.org/KellyLangs

Multiple people this very second are preparing for their journey to receive the gift of Kelly’s organ donation.  They “got the call” a few hours ago and are told “we have a match for you”.   They are rushing to the hospital, calling their loved ones with immense anticipation and fear, and probably updating their blogs too.  Believe in yourself, Kelly would say to them, everything will be okay.   Appreciate every moment.

Kelly will be donating her organs tonight at 11pm PST.  Her liver and both her kidneys will be going to three very lucky people.

Please join us in a moment of silence at 11pm as Kelly’s words above will be read out loud in the operating room to honor Kelly’s gift and the remembrance of her life.

With love and appreciation,
Kelly and her Family

p.s. there will probably be many questions regarding the transplantation process and we (and hopefully others) will try to answer them. Please contact Donate Life  if your questions have not been answered.

Hello dear friends, family, and followers of Kelly,

I am imagining a place where we all can sit together and talk. A place where our hearts and minds are open, and that each of us can feel the good nature that is all around us.

Please prepare yourself with a deep breath as we have some news for you. Kelly passed on January 1, 2013. I hope you can feel her presence right now, because she is sitting right next to you.

We feel that Kelly has a message that she would like to share with each one of us who has joined her in her journey. She would say to you, that it is OK to feel whatever you are feeling right now. Please know that she encourages each of us to continue to face your own life’s challenges with dignity, courage and love.

She transcended her own CF challenge to become an icon of hope, not that she was in want of attention (it took most of her life to feel comfortable in sharing her challenges with CF). She never wanted to dwell on this; she always wanted to move forward with grace and ease. She looked for beauty in every individual and every thing to find comfort and joy in the life that surrounded her.

Her vivaciousness was how she faced her journey, and this was her message. It is her teaching us how we can move with grace and ease in our own lives. Her journey is not over.

Kelly’s passing was not due to her new lungs, but a hemorrhagic stroke. Her stroke was a way to bring a very definite, peaceful, and painless end to this part of her journey.

We would like to continue Kelly’s blog. We do not yet know what we will say or when it will be, but we would like to continue Kelly’s message. If you would like to stay informed, please follow Kelly’s blog by entering your email at the top right of this page and click “sign me up”.

If you would like to share what Kelly means to you, please share your message in the comments below. We would like to hear it as your positive energy continues to support us and everyone involved in this journey.

Please always know Kelly is with you and keep her beautiful smile in your mind.

With all our love and appreciation,

Kelly’s family.

We will be having a celebration of Kelly’s life to honor her in the coming months. Details to follow.