wizelight photography: 07/10

A little over a week ago, my family and I travelled to West Shokan, NY to attend Killian Day which was held both to honor the life of Killian Mansfield and to support the foundation he created in the last months of his life.

Killian was truly a remarkable young man. He had a light, a charm and such goodness about him. (I need to give a shout out here to his parents Phil and Barbara who provided the environment, encouragement and support not only for who Killian was, but also for all that he endeavored to do.) The last time that I got to spend time with him, was in August of 2008. He was in DC with his mom and staying at the National Institutes of Health undergoing yet another treatment to fight the Synovial Sarcoma. Because one of Killian's comfort foods was Ethiopian food (I mean come on - what a cool kid!) - we sought out a local Ethiopian restaurant to have dinner. We picked them up (he and Barbara) in front of one of the Smithsonian museums and headed to dinner. Killian had a growth on his chin from the cancer and as he was getting into the car, my five year old daughter took one look at him sitting next to her and said "Mama, I want to go home." Well, needless to say, I was embarrassed and uncomfortable and totally unsure of exactly how to handle the situation...she said it a few more times...I did not know what to do.

Killian, who was fifteen at the time, began gently talking to Sophie (who would not look at him). He asked her questions. He told her that she could ask him whatever she wanted. He kept engaging her. When we got to the restaurant and we were washing out hands, I asked Sophie how she was doing and she said "I'm good. I really like Killian, he's really nice. I don't even notice what's on his face any more." I'm still in awe of the grace with which he handled the whole situation and I'm so grateful for his enormous part in helping to teach my daughter about the true beauty of people.

Last summer I attended his memorial service. The fullness, the eloquence and the profundity of every word spoken about him that day could have belonged to someone who spent much more time on this planet. The magnitude of this kid's effect on people was unbelievable.

So, no surprise at the continued outpouring on the first annual Killian Day.

Here are a few pics from the day...