Gabriella was born on December 17, 1998.  With the exception of mom and dad, no one in the medical profession believed that she would make it that far.  She proved everyone wrong.  She lived a thousand lives in one:  she played soccer, basketball, volleyball, and finished a 5k; learned how to skate, play the guitar, and began playing the drums; she was a Girl Scout and could read and speak in Greek.  She read the Harry Potter series four times (all seven books) and the Percy Jackson series six times (all five books).  She visited 34 states and 10 countries.  She was a voracious reader and loved her family and friends.  She loved to help children.  She was patient and caring.  She loved animals, especially cats and dogs.  When the cicadas went through their rebirth, Gabriella (age five at the time) held them and had no fear, the same with caterpillars and other insects.  She loved art and doing things independently.

During her ten years of life, Gabriella was the rose in a desert, the light in a dark room, the pillar of honesty, the pure goodness in a dream, the healer in a war, the warmth in the snow, the joy in endless sadness, the comfort of home, the hug for the forgotten, the guide for those who have lost their way, the strength of the voiceless.  She believed in magic and miracles, and, of course, in Santa.

Gabriella touched us during her life, and, in death, she continues to dance around us sprinkling her fairy dust.