COVID 1st Responder Dies Age 40; Had 2 Small Kids

On January 5th, 2022, my best friend died unexpectedly. He leaves behind his wife Jess and two young children Melisande, age 5 and Miel-Henri, age 1. I ask for your help to support Jess and the Lebrun family in honoring the memory of Marc Lebrun.

Marc had been feeling restless the night before, due to his Atrial Fibrillation (AFib). In order to calm himself and bring his heart back into a steady rhythm, he spent his last evening beside his daughter Melisande, in her room. The next morning, he woke up feeling no better yet obligated to carry out his activities as his family prepared to leave the home like any other day. He insisted on taking the trash to the street, but upon returning inside, found he had to catch his breath on the couch. Jess, with their son in her arms, already late to leave the house, only turned briefly to ask if he was okay, but he was unresponsive as his body slumped sideways. Shocked at this sight, she hurried over and found that he was having a seizure. She immediately applied CPR while calling for help, but there was little she could do. Their daughter asked at that moment, "Is Daddy dead?", having just witnessed it all happen.

Marc was only 40 at the time of his death. During the last two years of the pandemic, he and Jess were essential workers: Marc worked as a firefighter and Jess as a nurse practitioner. At the same time, they were raising their wonderful children Melisande and Miel-Henri. Marc loved his family and wanted nothing more than to raise his children with the same enthusiasm he showed in connecting with people, as he had done his entire life. The gracious spirit that he learned from his mother permeated throughout his personality, always willing to share his time, a laugh, a great song, a sudden “You good? You need anything?”, or food with anyone he came in contact with and seemed ever-present with his family.

 

His work brought additional purpose to his life. When he began his journey as a fireman 14 years ago, he always aspired to be “just a little bit better than the day before”. This evolution could be seen from childhood, practicing stunts on his BMX bike in a gravel alleyway with his friend Marcus, to learning to draw to create comics, playing soccer in high school, to dramatically shifting from fixing copiers to being a cadet in the Philadelphia Firefighters Academy. Marc held a strong belief in highlighting Black and Caribbean culture; being especially proud of his Trini heritage; Marc would often speak of new history books or a culturally significant song he found that added more contextual color to his heritage and ancestry.

 

When I met Marc, we were teenagers hanging out in the same area of Olney with a shared passion for comics and video games. We bonded as kids do; debating about both deep subjects such as faith, hopes, and dreams, and which games we had just discovered and enjoyed. He was the best man at my wedding and delivered a speech that really expressed how much attention he paid to our friendship. As we each got older and echoed one another in creating families and careers, we’d see each other every few weeks, including an entire day where we did exactly what we always did; sharing thoughts, opinions, and the same old stories that still made both of us laugh. Just two weeks before his sudden passing, Marc’s mission that day was to deliver to me a batch of a pepper sauce that he finally said he ‘perfected’. His mother’s recipe he had been working on since her passing 9 years ago.

 

It is a devastating loss for us all that Marc is no longer with us, but those he would have given everything to, still go on. Please join me in action to ensure his family’s future is secured as he would have wanted it. All funds will be invested to ensure the success of his children with whatever they'll need as they continue on.

 

If you’ve ever had a ‘cheers’ with him, if he bent your ear for a story, made you laugh and smile, or just shared a quiet moment with him, please consider contributing.

 

Anything helps to support Jess, Melisande, and Miel-Henri. We will post updates as we have them regarding funeral arrangements. Thank you.