Tuesday morning , March 20th at 12:38 a.m., we received the call that the Doctors had to begin chest compression and to come to the hospital. Before we could leave home, we received the news no one ever wants to hear, she didn't make it. Julia Reid passed peacefully, surrounded by the all the nurses and doctors that loved on her for so long, and took such wonderful care of her through the last seven months. God has called our baby daughter home, and we are joyous in this fact, even with the immense grief we feel. Sadness is for the ones left behind, not the ones called home.
There are lessons the Lord has in this for us; we don't know what they are yet, but we will listen with open hearts for them, and learn from both the joy of having our youngest daughter with us, even for this short time, and tragedy of the loss of her, what we can, in our own time, as He see fit.
In her short time on this Earth, she was loved by SO many people, from literally all over the world. We were comforted from messages from as far away as Australia, Taiwan, Austria, Germany, Poland, Canada, Ireland, the U.K., and here in the U.S. Through her, I've personally made a lot of new friends, shared stories with them, and prayed with them. Those messages were relayed to Courteney, Emma, and JR. We can't thank you all enough.
The range of emotions over the last seven months, culminating with this moment now, can't be described with words, so I'll not even hazard an attempt. They simply can't be described.
In closing, my sincere thanks go out to ALL of you for your constant prayers; then, and now. Without the Lord and all of you, we couldn't have made it through this journey, and I don't think we would have wanted to. A special thanks has to be made here for the Staff at Duke Medical Center, especially the Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (PCICU) and the Surgical Staff. Without them, she wouldn't have had the fighting chance she did.
May God Bless you, and keep You All.
Thank you for all your help.
Glenn, Courteney and Emma Howell
A graveside service will be held on Monday, March 26, 2018 at 1:00pm, at Brier Creek Memorial Gardens, 7600 ACC Boulevard, Raleigh, NC. The family will be receiving friends at the family home following the service.
Donations may be made in Julia Reid's memory to Duke Pediatric Cardiac ICU (to donate, please contact Emily by email at [email protected]) or to Ronald McDonald Family Room at Duke University Hospital.
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