Last weekend I attended the Celebration of Life for former
Camp Goodtimes camper Jacob Sears. Jake was just 19 years of age and was a big part of the camp family, having attended for years. It was a wonderful heartfelt
tribute to a young life taken far too soon by cancer. The day was filled with things that Jake loved and was passionate about, his family, his friends, and his music. The music was incredibly moving. "Amazing Grace" and "Let
it be" were performed by professional musicians who were close friends with Jake,
and the guests also sang along with "Firework" by Katy Perry which
got progressively louder as the song went along, with Jake’s camp friends,
fittingly, even busting out the hand gestures towards the end.
Jakes’ mother Jonae showed unimaginable strength as she
dealt with her own grief while at the same time lovingly embracing the sorrow
of others. Tragically this was the second child she has lost to cancer with the
passing of Jake’s older brother Nick five years ago. Nick also attended Camp
Goodtimes where he is still honored at the ‘Memory Circle’ each year.
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| Jake's mom Jonae |
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| A hug from a close friend, the Dean of students from Jake's school |
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| Jonae, sharing a happy memory |
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| Nick at camp in June of 2006 |
The tributes on Saturday came from all facets of Jake’s
life, firstly his brave mom, followed by his relatives, the Dean of students at
his school, his music teacher, a friend from school, his counselor from Camp
Goodtimes, and two of his best friends from camp, Rocky and Maggie. The girls
stood holding hands and with voices trembling, poured their hearts out to
Jonae, thanking her for the gift that Jake was to them. It took great courage
for them to express themselves in that manner and they did so respectfully and reverently.
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| Rocky and Maggie |
There were so many people in attendance who were hurting and
before you knew it, hours had passed, the time lost in the sharing of memories. Maggie said, “We met on Daboata at camp and from the moment
he said, ‘Hi!’ we just clicked. He was so special.” There is no doubt that his memory will be cherished and protected and his life
will continue to be celebrated because he deeply impacted the lives of everyone
he connected with. While listening to the outpouring of emotion it became very clear that Jake was the same loving person to whoever he encountered in life and he loved his family and friends
with conviction and without condition.
I personally will miss his enthusiasm and energy at camp and
his willingness to try anything. I enjoyed very much hanging out with him and
his cabin mates on the beach taking pictures, playing guitar and singing songs
as well as our many random duets on the piano.
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| Playing piano at camp with Jake in 2009 |
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| Jake's colorful entrance to the dance in 2011 |
The last time I saw him was at the hospital last spring. His
treatment had left him unable to speak. There were a few other staff from camp
visiting as well and I mentioned to Jake that too bad he didn’t have a piano
because it would be fun to play. His mom then pointed to an electric keyboard
in the corner of the room. I picked it up and sat down on a chair next to his
bed, almost falling over in the process, which brought a nice smile to his face
and laughter from everyone else (I’m not necessarily known for being graceful).
After playing a few silly little things I went into the chords of “Lean on me”
and everyone else in the room started singing quietly. It was moment but we just
sang a little bit of it because I could tell Jake was tired. Then I said to
him, “I’m gonna keep singing camp songs until I see you smile!” Instantly a
huge smile came to his face as everyone cracked up, me included. It really was
good to see that smile again. I said my warm goodbyes and off I went. As I
walked to my car I was so thankful to have been able to have visited him and at
the same time I was mystified that a young man so full of life the last time I
saw him could be rendered so helpless by the relentless attack of this
invisible foe.
I’m just so sad for Jake, his mom, and the rest of his family and
friends because he had so much still to give had it not been for cancer
taking away that opportunity. I, like so many, are very proud to have known him.
