For Maddie
Madeline Alice Spohr
November 11, 2007 – April 7, 2009
Sweet, beautiful Maddie passed away unexpectedly on Tuesday, April 7th, 2009. The outpouring of love from around the country, and the world, has been overwhelming. Thank you, so much, to everyone who’s offered love, support, well wishes, prayers, comfort and every other form of encouragement to Maddie’s family. She was an amazing little girl who will be missed by thousands of people, many of whom had never even met her in person.
Heather and Mike have asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to March of Dimes in Maddie’s memory.
For more information, visit their websites, The Spohrs are Multiplying and The Newborn Identity and March for Maddie.
Service Information
A service in celebration of Maddie’s life was held at 2:30pm on Tuesday, April 14th, 2009. Family and friends from around the country packed the Old North Chapel at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills. For more information on the site, go here. Heather and Mike asked that everyone wear purple in honor of Maddie. It was amazing to see the sea of purple that filled the chapel.
Donations For Maddie’s service and/or reception have been received from:
Team March for Maddie:
If you are in the Los Angeles area, or want to be in the area for the event, the March for Babies Team Maddie walk is Saturday, April 25th. Visit the March for Maddie team site for more information or email undomesticdiva@gmail.com.
T-shirts for the LA walk will be available Saturday morning. We are asking that you pay $20 per shirt, payable to the Paypal account. Please make a note when you make your payment that it’s for t-shirts and be sure to note what sizes you’d like. It’s first come, first serve, so if I run out of a particular size, I’ll have to bump you up a size. Thanks. Email me with questions meghan(@)amomtwoboys(.)com.
Send them love:
A mailbox has been set up for Heather and Mike, so if you would like to send them anything, you can send it to:
Mike & Heather Spohr
11870 Santa Monica Blvd. #106-514
West Los Angeles, CA 90025
It is at a UPS Store, so they can accept packages as well.
Maddie’s Monster:
Maddie’s Monster, designed by Mike and Heather in Maddie’s memory, are now available for purchase from Curly Q Cuties. Purple in honor of Madeline, with eyes as big and blue as hers, these plush dolls are sure to warm your heart. Proceeds from the sales of Maddie’s Monster will go to the March of Dimes.
The code for the button is available here if you’d like to add one to your site.
Donation Information
A PayPal Account has been set up to assist Heather and Mike with any upcoming expenses. You can donate by clicking the link below. All money received will go directly to them to be used at their discretion. Service and Reception costs are adding up, so anything you can contribute will help. Also, Heather was a Stay at Home Mom, and Mike is an independent contractor, so while he’s not working they don’t have any income coming in. The longer he’s able to stay home and grieve, the better. Again, whatever you can contribute will help. Thank you.
*The code for this button is available here*
***The code for this button is available here***
As always, feel free to email me with any questions you have: meghan(@)amomtwoboys(.)com
Remembering Maddie
If you’ve written a post in honor of Maddie, please link to it below so that Heather, Mike, their family and friends can read what you’ve written and understand how truly loved Maddie is. PLEASE, be sure to leave the direct link to your post and not the link to your home page.
I’ll miss you sweet girl. The world is a better place for having had you in it. We love you.
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Heather and Mike – I am truly sorry for your loss. May your memories of Maddie comfort you in the days ahead.
I hope the savvy source post helps get the word out even more about Maddie and people will be moved to help out. Hope all goes well tomorrow and it will be a wonderful celebration of a life that was all too short but oh so sweet. God bless…
Meghan – it is thanks to you that I knew this beautiful family and little girl. What you have done is amazing. Thank you. Em
The grief Heather and Mike must feel, its just so incomprehensible. My prayers are with them, and with you, Meghan, as their friend. I pray for peace in your lives. God bless you all.
To Heather, Mike, and Meghan – Although I do not know you, and did not know of you or Maddie until today, I want to add my small words of sympathy for the loss of precious little Maddie. Thoughts and prayers to you and your extended family.
Mike and Heather, I can only hope that you get some feeling from all these links that you’re not alone in coping with this, because I know you may feel like it. Good luck tomorrow.
My thoughts and prayers have been with you (and will continue to be) since Maddie’s passing. May you find peace in the love and support coming from all ends of the country.
It’s not enough, but I wrote a little something, with links for Paypal donations. It’s what I can do…and what I needed to do.
Please know I will attend the memorial tomorrow, possibly in silence, but to strenghthen numbers.
T.
I’ve written on here before, but felt compelled to say to the Sphor’s – I was introduced to you and your precious angel daughter Madeline by through ‘mrskutcher’ and your wonderful friend Meghan on Twitter. I have been so incredibly touched. Maddie’s name and spirit and soul LIVES ON for eternity through the love that has poured out for your precious little girl. She’s touched the lives of thousands and I just wanted to give you a cyber-hug and squeeze your hand and tell you (from personal experience) that as sad as we here on earth feel, little Maddie is gigglling and dancing and playing with precious little angels that are so thrilled and lucky to have her with them. May the love, hope, faith and prayer of so many help you through, and may God shine upon you every second of each and every day.
God Bless You & Your Family
I’m not much of a bloger myself but I enjoy reading other peoples blogs. Friday I came across a blog about Maddie and my heart just broke in two. Ever since I have been drawn to this little angel and her family. My thoughts and prayers go out to Heather, Mike, and everyone who loves Maddie. I have posted Maddie’s picture, paypal buttons, and her website on my myspace page.
Meaghan you are a great friend for everything you are doing. God Bless you!
So incredibly sad. Thanks Meghan and others for being Heather’s girlfriends and supporting her and Mike through this heart-breaking loss of sweet Maddie.
I have written a post for her on BlogHer. Thinking of everyone involved.
My blog has gone purple in honor of Maddie. Wishing peace for a difficult day.
I have been so touched by the outpouring of the online community. When there are no words, hopefully these gestures can give a shred of comfort.
Ok, I’ve linked to Operation Purple Balloon. Meghan you are doing a wonderful amazing job supporting your friends. I know Maddie is smiling down on you. xoxo
My condolences to your family. I wish you peace, health, and happiness for the future. I would like to help remember Maddie by offering our musicians for any planned events. I will donate studio time to you if it can help in any way.
All my best,
Terence Davis
Great Music Studio
Malibu, CA
My heart and prayers are with you !!!!!!!!!!!!
I don’t know the Spohr’s family, but my heart goes out to them. I am so very sorry for your loss.
thinking of l.a. now and sending my love across the miles.
My heart is breaking, shattering for the Spohr family. I have no words, just prayers and best wishes and apologies that I found out too late when the service was.
You’re a good friend Meghan.
God Bless. My company, Horseshoe Casino in Bossier City, Louisiana is taking donations of $5. for all of our employees to wear purple shirts on Wednesday. Horseshoe is owned by Harrah’s, which is an enormous company to be donating, so hopefully there will be HUGE amounts of money pouring in. I hope and pray the donations help in any way your family or other’s might need. May God Bless your beautiful daughter and your loving hearts.
Our thoughts and prayers to all of you! God Bless you and Sweet Baby Angel Maddie! XOXOXO
My heart is breaking as a mom. I wish I had the words to help make it stop hurting and I wish I could bring her back to you.
Just from reading about her, she is an inspiration.
My thoughts and prayers to you Heather and Mike.
I’ve added the button and linked her at my site.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth
Meghan, you are a very special person to have done this for the family. My heart breaks as I read and watch this unfolding. Couldn’t imagine it. My prayers and thoughts are with the family, Maddie and you for stepping up and doing what your doing at such a sad time. God Bless.
Did a Wordless Wednesday post with your button–awesome job. Thank you.
No thoughts, no words, no prayers are enough.. but I send them with my love in hopes that they may reach Maddy’s family and someday give them a small measure of comfort. A child this Angelic, sweet, happy and strong is a shining example of true love and hope. Thank you Mike and Heather for sharing your joy. Please lean on us in your pain.
I hope Mike and Heather find some measure of comfort in knowing how many people loved and cared about their amazing baby girl. I will miss seeing her shining little face, and my heart goes out to everyone that knew her. A great loss. I’m so very sorry.
Mike and Heather,
Please know that we are all thinking of you and praying for you in this incredibly difficult time.
Though I dont know you or your little girl I want to my love and prays with you in this time. I am the mother of a 15 month old little girl and I couldnt imagine losing her. God Bless you.
I forgot to leave my comment!
Honoring Maddie will be one of the most cherished and memorable days of my life. She will continue to be an inspiration forever. Heather and Mike, you are incredible. You shared so much joy with the rest of us. Thank you for sharing and letting us all be a part of Maddie’s life as well.
You all have honored Maddie’s memory with loving words, I, like many people are truly awed by your story.
The two of you have inspired me (not an easy thing to do), and I have signed up for the March of Dimes walk in honor of your beautiful girl.
What an amazing outpouring of support for such a tiny little girl. She has clearly touched so many people’s hearts, and will forever have a small piece of my heart.
I hesitated to write anything because I don’t know the family, but then I just wrote what was on my heart. She was such a beautiful little girl, and I am so devastated for your loss. Coincidentally, purple is one of my favorite colors, and now I’ll remember and honor sweet Maddie every time I see it. You guys are in my thoughts and prayers. Maddie was truly amazing.
Sending all my love, thoughts and prayers…We’ll miss you Maddie.
I never met Maddie, and yet I will never forget her. Her story has both broken my heart and restored my faith in mankind. I am amazed at how strangers from all over the world (myself included) have rallied around Heather and Mike to help support them and hold them up when they need it most. What an incredibly profound impact this sweet little girl has had on so many people – some people live their whole lives without touching this many hearts. What an incredible gift she has given us all, and how lucky we all are to have been touched by her.
I wish I had some wise words to say to take all the pain away for Mike and Heather. And God bless you Meghan for being their crutch in this time when it must seem impossible to stand alone. You are a beautiful soul!
I know Maddie (in her passing) has already performed so many miracles. Opening so many eyes to the importance of showing our love, to take the time to appreciate everything around us.
We ‘almost’ lost our youngest & spent time in the NICU when he was born. His story is at http://www.caringforcole.blogspot.com/ …and they rest of the family are included on the RaMbLeR blog.
My thoughts and prayers are and will remain with all of you. I pray that God heals your wounds quickly.
I didn’t post this week in honor of Maddie. Thanks much for compiling these and being such an amazing friend to Heather and Mike.
You are all in my heart and prayers!
Hey there. Linked a post I wrote which wasn’t exactly about Maddie, but was certainly inspired by her and all of you. Please to all.
I learned of your precious Maddie from Matt Logelin’s blog.
There are truly no words to convey my sorrow for such a loss. The only thing I can say is prayers are being sent your way in the name of your baby girl.
I did not find Maddie, Heather, & Mike until Maddie left this world. I have cried and prayed for them every day since. I am also touched by the outpouring of love from bloggerworld. It gives me hope for humanity, really. May God bless each person who has given to the Spohrs, and may He continue to wrap His arms around Mike & Heather in comfort and love.
xo
I don’t know where to begin. I’m not a writer, I’m not a blogger, but I was floored when I logged on and read that Maddie had passed away. I followed Heather only for a brief period. I love to read and look at pictures. My daughter Lily was born at 31 weeks. And although scary, I pulled through. I had no one who understood what it meant to have a preemie As long as everything was ok, they where ok. It was scary when I was given instruction on what to do if she stopped breathing when I took her home. I was alone. I was fortunate that every thing turned out ok. So I searched the web to find other families going through the same thing. That’s when I came across Heather and Mike and their struggles. I could finally see that I was not alone.
But then, the tragic news. I was floored. I felt like I had been punched in the stomach. When I heard that Maddie had passed I felt empty. I cried, I felt numb. I searched the web for all the stories about Maddie. I read the wonderful words that Heather and Mike wrote for Maddie. But yet, I still felt like the rug had been pulled out from underneath me. She should still be here. It’s not fair. Then the guilt set in. How could I look at my beautiful little girl, yet Maddie is gone.
About a week after Maddie had passed, I finally came to realize, after all the tears, after all the hurt, Maddie has changed how I looked at life. I never would even imagine that such a tragic event would have such an impact on me. So, this is for Maddie, sweet dear little Maddie, who was taken too soon.
Maddie, I would like to thank you for changing my whole perspective on life. I watched you grow into a sweet, wonderful angel. I would compare you and your acheivements to my own little girl. You had such a wonderful personality. Your smile was infectious. I could tell you were going to be a brilliant scholar one day. But after your passing I didn’t know what to say. But as time passed, and all the hurt I felt, life as I knew it was a whole new ballgame.
I no longer get angry at the little things in life (and sometimes the big things). I no longer get angry at work, all the deadlines mean nothing to me now. I no longer get impatient with people who drive slow or cut me off. It is all so irrelavent now. Now I think only of how precious and fragile life is. Instead or worrying about work, I think of my sweet Lily. When I get home I give her extra kisses. I tell her over and over how much I love her. This weekend, instead of hanging out with friends I took her down to the beach. She had never been to the beach before. And for 30 minutes she sat in my lap, calm like I never seen her before, taking it all in. The waves, the cute baby seals sunning themselves on the beach, the seagulls flying about, the smell of the sea. These are the things that are important to me now.
You will always be in my thoughts. I look at your pictures everyday, missing you. But you have made me a better person and for that I thank you.
I am not a religious person, but if there is a heaven, it has been blessed with the most wonderful little girl ever.
All my love,
Angela
Heather & Mike,
Words cannot even explain how sorry I am to hear about Maddie…She had a smile and a sparkle that I will never forget…I will never be able to look at the color purple without thinking of “your Maddie”…I will never be able to hear the name Maddie without thinking of “your Maddie” and when I see a sunset, I will think of those incredible eyes of hers. We will never forget Maddie…she will live on in all of us…
Heather’s tribute to Madeline was the most beautiful thing I have ever read. I wish for strength for their family.
As stated in an earlier post, there are no words, but I do send my thoughts and prayers to Maddy’s family.
It is so wonderful the things you are doing for the Sphors! My heart hurts everytime I think about sweet Maddie and their lost! No mother or father should feel that kind of pain.
Thank you for helping such a sweet family~ I hope we all can do a little something for Maddie and her family~
I linked to my post about a hat and blanket delivery for the NYP Hospital NICU in honor of Maddie.
I feel so blessed to have gotten to know Maddie through Mike and Heather’s words and pictures – she has a beautiful spirit that just shines through. I hope that Heather and Mike can find comfort in memories and know that their little girl is watching over them every single day. She was truly blessed to have such wonderful parents as they were to have such a beautiful daughter. My heart breaks for their loss. I saw this quote and thought of them:
A wife who loses a husband is called a widow. A husband who loses a wife is called a widower. A child who loses his parents is called an orphan. There is no word for a parent who loses a child. That’s how awful the loss is.-Ronald Reagan
Please know that there are so many of us out here that keep you all close to our hearts. (((HUGS)))
Maddie is such a beautiful person. Heather and Mike should be very proud of the amazing creature, I feel so blessed that they allowed us in to know Maddie too. I wish there was more I could do to help. The Spohr family is in our thoughts, daily and we promise to remember, forever.
As the mother of a child with a terminal illness, I can only imagine the pain you are going through. Thank you for making Maddie and your personal loss and tragedy a message and beacon for the world.
If we were only so lucky with Duchenne’s Muscular Dystrophy. Maddie is a godsend. You can see it in her angel eyes.
God bless all who care. God bless all who try to make a difference.
Words cannot express how deeply sorry I am that you have lost your beautiful angel. You’re in my thoughts and prayers. God bless you both.
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