Amy passed away on November 10, 1999 due to heart complications that she was born with. The following was written by her mother for her funeral.
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"That gracious thing, made up of tears and light." - Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Wednesday, November 10, 1999 broke to bright sunshine filtered through the prism of the still falling rain. It had been a dark, stormy and heart-wrenching thirty-six hours, but a beautiful rainbow reached across the sky that morning. The golden leaves, in the trees and on the ground, glistened in the morning sun. Only hours before, we decided that it was time to let Amy rest. The brilliant new day affirmed our decision. Finally, she could be at peace.

In truth, the Amy we know passed away quietly at home on Monday night, but the clouds, rain and wind returned late that Wednesday morning outside her ICU window. It was a long and heavy afternoon of quiet goodbyes and tears mixed with a pensive and earnest desire for the blessing of silence. Finally, late that dark autumn afternoon, the clouds parted once again and the day's second rainbow appeared vibrant and strong and clear in the sky. Heaven had its newest angel!

I cannot adequately express the power of what we saw that day or the strength and joy that it filled us with, but it does explain the rainbows here today. Rainbows have always been a symbol of peace and beauty, and the promise that "everything will be okay." How could anyone ever look upon a rainbow and be unhappy? It is a rare and special event that shows you the beauty of life on this earth. Sounds like someone I know.

The symbolism is thick and inescapable. The light of Amy's life shined upon us all if even indirectly. It was in her gentle spirit. It was in her laughter, and in her playful sense of humor. It was clearly in her devotion to family and friends, and it shined brightly in her love for animals. It also showed many of us that strength and grace go together beautifully. Perhaps it radiated most of all from her genuine kindness and the love she gave to others.

The tears that we have shed and those still to come, are the prisms through which Amy's light shines. We cry tears of sadness for ourselves because we miss her terribly. We cry tears of joy that she'll never feel pain and suffering again. We cry tears of happiness that she lived a good life full of love and laughter, and that we are blessed to have been a part of it.

The rainbow is Amy's spirit. It is all the colors of her life and the lives that she touched. Like a rainbow, her time here was too brief, but she left a lasting impression on us all. Amy's beautiful spirit left us with the promise that she is at peace, and that everything will be okay.

If, one day, we're together and see a rainbow, you'll understand our tears. Rainbows will forever remind us of Amy. Perhaps the next time you see a rainbow, you'll think of Amy too.
God bless.