Briley Leah Harris

Briley Leah Harris “Brala, Barley or Bri” of Tallahassee, Florida, student at Tallahassee Community College, passed away on Sunday, December 23 in Rochester, Minnesota at the age of 24 after returning to correct complications from her previous heart surgery. Briley was born in Tallahassee, Florida to Laura Harris on the 26th of November 1994.

When Briley was young, we could tell she was a unique and independent person. She became attached to certain toys and things which she only parted with on her terms such black tap shoes, ladybug rain boots, and white lace fold-over socks. Her most loved possession was the infamous “Baby” (a now discontinued Playskool Baby Doll). Every time Grandmom Lisa would be in a different town, she would be on a mission to find more babies to make sure she never had to be without. To this day, there are still numerous “back-up” babies to make sure she was never without one. As Briley got a little older, she loved wearing masks and face paint for Halloween in addition to dressing up as some pretty scary characters. In school, she was active in music starting at Raa Middle School playing clarinet in concert band and also in marching bands at both Leon High School and Creekside High School where she met some her best friends.

Briley was an amazing young lady who touched the lives of everyone she came in contact with. She always had a smile on her face and had a contagious laugh that could light up a room. Despite her medical challenges, Briley never complained about not feeling well or being too tired. Briley loved hanging out with her cousins playing video games, she took special interest in helping her younger brother navigate life by being there for him when he needed a friend or by guiding him when he felt lost. Briley loved to learn about history and was equally passionate about writing. Briley was a girl with big dreams demonstrated by her move to New York City in 2016. In 2018, Briley embarked on her most ambitious dream yet, to become a dental hygienist.

Briley was a special part of a very large loving family. She is preceded in death by her great-grandmother Rosella Shinder, grandfather Eugene Gottberg, and her uncle Paul Harris. Briley is survived by her loving parents Laura and Chris Gottberg, loving husband Elijah Harris, brother Cody Gottberg, adoring grandparents Jerry Harris, Elizabeth “Lisa” Harris, and Marion Gottberg. Briley also had many loving aunts and uncles including her maternal aunts and uncles (including spouse/partner): Ken Harris, David Harris (Naomi), Michael Harris (Iris), Debbie Ashlin (Bill), Jennifer Starling (Roy), and David Rudenborg. Briley’s fraternal aunts and uncles include Cliff Gottberg (Susan), Patti Mitchell and Lori Lucas (Marc). Maternal cousins Jordan Harris, Haley Ashlin, Noah Harris, Gabriel Starling, Shaina Harris, Zack Starling, Isabella Harris, and Harris Hagen. Fraternal cousins Alex, Jeffery, and Gabriel Mitchell and Stephanie Lucas. Briley’s loving pets Maisy (dog) and Pumpkin (cat). All family and friends love her deeply and will all miss her dearly.

Memorial services will be held at Temple Israel Tallahassee, 2215 Mahan Drive, Tallahassee, FL on Monday, January 21, 2019 at 11:00am. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Briley's honor to the American Heart Association - please go the following link http://www2.heart.org/goto/briley. One of Briley's last fundraising efforts was to this organization in honor of her Uncle Paul that passed away exactly 6 weeks prior.