Untitled Document

Jessica was born on New Year's Eve, 1987. She didn’t cry- she laid still with eyes wide open, looking at her new surroundings. All through her infancy she was a good and quiet baby.

When she was 3 she got a sister, Molly, and was so protective of her. That never changed through all these years. Her first ambition was to be an "artist" when she grew up, but soon gained a huge interest in dinosaurs, and for quite a few years wanted to be an archeologist, or paleontologist.

She could read pretty well by the age of 4-5, and loved school from the first. Always the perfectionist, she would stress about her grades, even in kindergarten! She gained a little brother at age 8, and even though he gave her no end of grief (as brothers do) she always took such good care of him and loved him very much. Later her grandmother introduced her to horseback riding, and she was hooked. Her room ended up with no wall space bare, for all the horse pictures she had cut out of magazines. She was bucked off a mule she was riding when she was in Jr. High, and broke her arm. We all feared that would be the end of her love for riding. She did NOT tolerate pain well. But she said immediately she would ride again, and even wanted to risk riding with the cast still on her arm (we didn’t let her though). Jessica was saved during the summer of her 6th grade year, and became very strong in her faith, being very active in her church and never ever was afraid to tell someone about it. 8th and 9th grades were hard for Jessie. She felt different and isolated from her peers. She felt very misunderstood, and often came home after school in tears. But something happened by the time she hit 10th grade. It was like something clicked, that made her realize that she WAS different from everyone else, and it was a GOOD thing. She had a large circle of friends, and even the kids she didn’t "hang" with respected her. Super active in school activities, like drama club, fish club (a Christian club of teens) (she was president) 4-H (she was president) and S.A.D.D. (students against destructive decisions) (she was president elect for the coming year), as well as singing in the honors choir, playing flute in the band, and still keeping her grades close to perfection (many of you know that she got a "B" this year and it about drove her mad...) This past year has been incredible for her. The happiest- I’m sure of that. She had found love with her boyfriend Chance and they were so happy together, making plans for their future together. She got a tattoo on her right ankle depicting a cross with roses for her 16th birthday- alot of people disagreed with my decision to let her do that, but she was so proud of her faith, and wanted it displayed. We bought her a car last winter, and she got her license in the spring, anxious for her job at the stables, where she had volunteered for 2 years prior. She had been offered a chance to go to a university for 6 weeks this summer for a special program in math and science. It was a wonderful opportunity, since she loved the sciences, and had decided to study meteorology when she graduated. But she didn’t want to be away from home that long, miss out on work, and be away from Chance. We understood. Still, her future could not have been brighter, that was for sure.

Now the hard part; most who are visiting this site already know what happened. But for those who dont..On June 21st Jessica was driving home from work. No one knows why, and will probably never know.. but she crossed the centerline and hit a van head-on. The driver of the van was killed instantly. Jessica was flown to Springfield hospital. We waited and prayed all night, into the morning. But her internal injuries were too severe, the bleeding wouldn’t stop, and she died at the tender age of 16.

Ok, there is her life story. But there is more to be said. Jessica was the kindest, most loving, honest person I have ever known. She would buy me flowers or a plant for no reason whatsoever... often. She also had an awesome sense of humor, and was so fun to be around.. Sometimes ornery, but always in a fun way. She was the person that everyone went to with their problems, and she always found time to listen. Without ever preaching... she led many others to Christ, by her example. She had become a wonderful young woman with whom we could not have been prouder. The 350+ people who came to her funeral are a testament of how much she meant, to so many. Those of us she has left behind are left with sorrow and emptiness. I, her mother, feel this most of all, but can find joy in knowing that her short life was full, rich, and well lived. Her sister and brother are following in her footsteps already, and give us all hope that life CAN and WILL go on. It won’t be easy. I pray I will be worthy to see my darling angel again in heaven someday. For I know that is where she is, in Gods loving arms, and He is telling her " Well done, my faithful child. Well done"