HER2 Support Group Forums - Jay's Moving Tribute To Our Courtney

For those who do not go to Courtney's Caring Bridge site I wanted to share Jay's loving and moving tribute to a very special lady whom I think we all agree died way too young. May you rest in peace, dear Courtney.

Farewell to our wife, daughter, sister, auntie, niece, friend, and survivor

Courtney died peacefully in her home in San Francisco, this afternoon. Her family was surrounding her with love.

Please pray for Courtney and keep her in your thoughts today. In lieu of flowers or meals, please donate to support The Courtney Harrington LeBoeuf Fund. It is a charitable legacy to one of the most incredible women we have all known. www.CourtneysFund.com

Ask any doctor or fellow-survivor and they will tell you how Courtney's survival over these 4 years was hard-won - we left no stone un-turned - she participated in cutting-edge clinical trials at University of Washington (12 trips to Seattle), UCSF, and consulted with experts at MD Anderson Center (Houston), Dana Farber (Boston), Stanford, and UCSF. We had the world's best integrative medical care from Dr. Garrett Smith and everyone at Smith Integrative Oncology.

Since Courtney's diagnosis four years ago in April 2008, we truly lived each day to its fullest. In just the past four years, here are some of the highlights of our world travels and adventures -- while battling this disease:
Courtney was no stranger to travel and adventure - having visiting 6 of the 7 continents - but realizing that time is life's precious asset we hiked the Scottish Highlands, rode camels at the Great Pyramids of Giza, peered into King Tut’s tomb, surfed on the waves of Maui’s shore, strolled the Mall in Washington D.C. admiring the imposing monuments and museums, enjoyed the view from the Space Needle watching the ships travel up Puget Sound, while plotting our trip to Mt Ranier (check!), attending the the Olympics in Vancouver, SCUBA diving the reefs of Cozumel and strolling the ancient Mayan ruins of Tulum. We rolled the dice in Las Vegas – three times - including renewing our 5 year wedding vows with Elvis and celebrating with our lives with 40 friends on the open patio of the Bellagio.
We had mystical experiences swimming freely with dolphins, in the Arabian Sea off the coast of Oman, and again off the South Island of New Zealand. While receiving chemotherapy, Courtney successfully completely the Escape from Alcatraz challenge (swimming the treacherous waters from Alcatraz island to the San Francisco shoreline) and also swam as part of a team in the Wildflower Triathlon. We backpacked New Zealand, California's Lost Coast, Big Sur, Point Reyes, and logged countless miles in the Marin Headlines and down in Half Moon Bay.
The Oakland A's honored Courtney as their Honorary Bat Girl. We inspected the crack in the Liberty Bell, polished off a cheesesteak while in the neighborhood, shortly before heading to some theatre in Boston, riding a gondola in Providence, and watching snow fall on the mansions of Newport. We kayaked Monterey Bay, Abel Tasman National Park in New Zealand, and in our special Silver Lake, California. We sailed feluccas in Dubai, sailed up the Nile, tried punting on the river Cam in Cambridge, reefed sails in San Francisco Bay, remembered the Alamo in San Antonio (twice), attending many (MANY!) wonderful weddings, weekend getaways and and wine tastinngs in Napa and Sonoma. Lake Tahoe played to our 22-person Bay Area Winter Olympics, as well as being a favorite summer and winter outdoor playground. Somehow we tried haggis in Glasgow. Courtney danced as Jay performed with his college band on a grassy lawn in Ithaca. We felt the spray of waterfalls in Tennessee, New York, Hawaii, New Zealand, and California. We "tore it up" on Bourbon Street. We soared high above the Thames from inside a giant pod on the London Eye, breathed in the high desert air outside Santa Fe, and watched the elephant seals play in Point Reyes.We enjoyed 5-star evenings in in NYC -- only 18 hours after having been discharged from an ER in NYC for having a seizure -- and then joining friends at Le Bernardin.
This only scratches the surface - and only touched on how a remarkable person choose to accept their past 4 YEARS. There's so much more to the brief 34 year life of Courtney Marie (Harrington) LeBoeuf, and the CaringBridge guestbook and posts attest to that.
Courtney, we love you, we will miss you, and we will keep you spirit alive via your memories and CourtneysFund.
- Jay
A Celebration of her life will be held in the coming months. Notifications will be made via CaringBridge.
Per Courtney's wishes, this is a time for reflecting on the good times and innumerable lives that she touched.

“May God continue to bless you all in this life and inspire all of us to give to the ones we love and take care of each other. As you have all been here for me, I will endeavor to always be there for you.”
- Courtney LeBoeuf
August 3, 2011