Help Melissa's Family With Colten's Passing

My sister Melissa and her family, lost their sweet 6 year old Colten in a tragic off road vehicle accident Saturday, November 16th. He was their entire world and as you can imagine, they will be overwhelmed in the days to come planning his funeral, and taking time off work to grieve this unimaginable loss. Anything you can send would help make this incredibly dark time, more bearable and I know it will be greatly appreciated as they navigate their new path forward without the heart of their family.

A note from Melissa...

On November 16th at 3:15 pm, we lost the very best part of all of us. Colten was tragically killed in an ATV accident. We were not with him, but he was surrounded by love, and that gives us some sense of peace.

Colten was the sweetest, most lovable, and funny little guy..."the apple of my eye". He had a heart for God, and just knew that he was real, and that God loved him. It was pure. He was our family's whole world. I woke up yesterday and realized that I would never wake up to hold his sweet little hand or hug his little body ever again. I will never hear his little voice and sweet "I love you's" from the bacseat of my car. I will never read him another book or pick him up from school. I will never hear his funny stories or his laughter and giggles. Worst of all, I have realized that every day, going forward, I was going to wake up in this nightmare again and again. We have tried to find comfort in the most unimaginable, and it is so daunting. We have been surrounded by family and the people who knew and loved Colten best. And boy was he loved, because he was so incredibly special. He lived a life full of love, joy, and happiness. I know that dying young means that he will forever be our "perfect" Colten, because he was. But I want him back, and it is impossible to think I will never hold or talk to him again.

I derive some peace from the fact that Colten was loved fully and by so many- that he had a life where he was told how special, loved, smart, handsome, and funny he was every single day of his life. He never woke up without hugs and "I love you's." Our world was better with him in it, and I can't imagine a world without him.

Please pray for him and us. It is a complex situation and so many are hurting and blaming themselves. The what-if game is dangerous and we know that it was no one's fault. Life is made up of a series of millions of events that have led us to the nightmare we are in, not in the one moment that took him. Thank you for all of the messages we have received with your sweet words of encouragement and love. If I don't respond, please know that I have read each of them as I am able and that they lighten my heart, if only for a moment.

I could go on and on with the many stories of how we loved Colten well and how he loved us well, but my heart is too heavy and broken right now. I'm sure I will continue to post my heart over the next few days. Please bear with me as I process the greatest loss of my life. I know he is in heaven and in a better place, but my heart will ache every day to have him back with us. Thank you again for your continued prayers. We will let you know when we have a date for his celebration of life.