Funeral Costs for Heather Lynn

My name is Judith Ann Nielsen, Heather Lynn was my youngest biological child. When I was pregnant with her, we were unable to get a heartbeat, so I was told she would be a stillborn child. By the Grace of God, she was alive and well at birth. During her early years, Heather appeared to have more medical issues than our other children, but nothing serious. She came into a large family of biological, adopted, and foster children, and she loved every minute of welcoming new additions to our large tribe. Heather graduated from high school at age 16 and decided to enroll in a program to become a paramedic. From the very beginning, it was clear she had found her calling. She loved her classes, she excelled in her classes and she reached her goal of becoming a New York State certified paramedic. She spent almost 25 years working as a medic before a work-related injury put an end to her career. She then decided to return to school and earned a Social Work master's degree. By this time, Heather had been diagnosed as hearing impaired, as well as having Chrones Disease, a sleep disorder, and a second neurological sleep disorder. She decided to sell her home in Buffalo and move to Rochester to live with me. As the years went by, her health began to decline and she was diagnosed with kidney disease, diabetes, and several orthopedic issues needing surgery. In addition, her body made kidney stones which required two to three medical interventions every year. At age 50, she suffered a stroke. Heather had to take over 20 daily medications and she had gone through more than 20 surgeries towards the end of her life. Despite all of this, she continued to try and function every day, when she had good days, we would find something special to do, and when she had bad days, she would rest. None of her 7 specialists expected her to die in the near future. On the morning of 12/17/2021, I awoke to find her dead on her bedroom floor. Her autopsy listed the cause of death as "advanced kidney disease", and "pulmonary edema". She was an amazing, loving, caring and courageous lady. Every day she was in pain but she continued to try and live each day without complaining. I worked all my life as a social worker and licensed mental health counselor. Unfortunately, I was a victim of financial elder abuse, which wiped out everything I had saved for retirement. The only income I now have is my monthly Social Security and as such, it has been difficult for me to meet my financial obligations. We laid Heather to rest next to her father and grandparents. There is no indication of who she was and where she now rests. I would like to raise enough money to buy the simple stone that is allowed on her grave. It will have her name, date of birth and death. It will also have the words, "no more night, no more pain". Heather was such a gift to this world, she loved unconditionally, she loved her Lord, and she was an extraordinary human being.