Dear Jamie,
Last night I put a very overly tired baby Reagan to bed and as is the norm, I thought of you the whole time. As I was feeding Reags her bottle and rocking and singing to her, I stared up at the pink puffs on the ceiling and quietly cried thinking of you. I cried, like I do most nights that I put her to bed, thinking how proud you would be of this little girl; I think of the quotes on the wall that I had to put up without you; I think about how I hope that I put them up the way you wanted; I hope that the framed fabric pieces are hung in an arrangement you’d like; We still need to get a mirror with a white frame to go to the right of her crib, because that’s what you wanted; I wish I didn’t insist that you couldn’t see the bed skirt I was making until it was finished. I wish I at least showed you the fabric, because you would have loved it. The bed skirt on the other hand, well let’s just say that I clearly have not yet mastered the art of sewing. Continue Reading →
Picture taken March 3, 2012 (Lindsay – left, Anna Katherine – middle, Jamie – right)
When Jamie was alive, I loved to look at her smile. It was the best smile I ever saw! We loved to spend time together. When I found out that she was having twins, I was so happy for Paul and Jamie. When I first saw them they were so cute and handsome. Their names are John and Larkin. My family and I watch them grow up. Then a year later, they were having another girl. While I was at camp, Jamie was eating dinner. She did not feel good, so they took her to the hospital and gave her medicine, but it did not work. So they had to take the baby out and she died right there. The month or two after she died it was so hard to believe that it happened. Giving life to the new baby girl (named Reagan) was the last thing Jamie did. Reagan, John, Larkin, Paul and Jamie are the best. Before this happened, Jamie and Paul would have us over many times. We would play with the kids, have a dance party, eat pizza, and get our nails done. I am so happy to have an Aunt and Uncle like that. We still have sleep-overs at our house with the kids. I am still not used to not seeing Jamie. I really miss her beautiful smile.
I want Paul to know, he has a great future ahead of him and with the kids.
– Lindsay Kindem
Dear Jamie,
I am entering a new and exciting stage in my life. I am less than 2 months away from being be a Dad! It’s so crazy, I still can’t believe it. We are having a boy and we decided on the name Aiden Christopher. I know you would love the Irish name and that Christopher is a nod to Gramps. It makes me so sad though that I never will get to share this or other good news with you. You were my favorite person in the world to tell good news to. Your reactions were always so genuine and full of love, and you always made sure that I knew it. I can’t wait for my son to meet your kids. J you would be so proud of all of them. They are the most amazing kids I have ever met, and I am not just saying that because I am your brother. They are each so unique and adorable in their own way, but they also all share the qualities that you loved in people. They are kind, adventurous, loving, smart kids and just like us they love to dance.
You would be so proud of your husband too. He is truly one of my favorite people in the world. He has been such an amazing father to your children. He is so good with these kids and they in turn love him so much. Along with Dad, he has given me another true role model to look up to as I start my own journey as a father. I am so grateful that you chose such a wonderful person to be your partner. You know I always wanted a brother and you couldn’t have picked out a better one. Continue Reading →
When Barry and Kennette (me) went to visit Jamie, Paul and the twins when they were 3 months old, we fell in love. They were so small still, yet their personalities were already showing. They both coo’ed and smiled easily and were in our arms as much as they would let us. It was such a precious age. The greatest joy for both of us was seeing beautiful Jamie so good at her role as a mommy. She was so tender, loving, and attentive to the needs of each one.
The first thing that struck me about Larkin were her eyes. They were so unique and yet familiar. Perhaps they reminded me of her mommy. Some pictures of Jamie as a child seem to confirm it. However, there was another little girl Larkin reminded me of: Cindy Lou of WhoVille from The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. Jamie was sweet and agreed completely and the name Larkin Lu was born. I’m trying to attach the picture of Cindy Lou so all can see the similarity (which she may hate later in life!). Hopefully, Paul can help with that. Continue Reading →
For months after Jamie died, the only memories that my mind was able to focus on were very recent ones. Maybe because I couldn’t or can’t comprehend how someone who is with you, talking to you, calling you, emailing you one day, can just be gone the next.
Jamie and I talked pretty much every day, even if we were both very busy and it was only for two minutes. I miss our back and forth banter with each other. I miss everything about our friendship. I’ve become obsessed with finding any and all email exchanges we had over the years, as finding even the smallest, seemingly non-important email exchange, somehow brings me a little piece of her, or of us. This is one of our last email exchanges. It makes me smile and of course, cry, but it’s very “us” type of communication, and I suppose that’s why I can’t help but read it over and over again and try to hold on like hell to my last memories of her.
As I (Regan Teti Marscher) told Maureen at Jamie’s service – Jamie exists at the very root of my soul. We literally “grew up” together in middle school and then high school.
Although we knew each other already, Jamie and I first really connected at Camp Tockwogh in MD the summer before 8th grade. We were in the same cabin and I remember us being so comfortable around each other. We both LOVED the Little Mermaid which was recently released. I have a vivid memory of the two of us at the side of the camp pool pretending to be Ariel when she bursts out of the water during a reprise of “Part of Your World” . We then continued showing off that little stunt at many pool parties to come We also loved what a goofball Ariel’s friend Scuttle the sea gull was and we loved to imitate him. “Woah what a swim!” Now as my two little girls watch the movie I can’t help but think of Jamie and I being goofy at the poolside.
As we continued through middle school Ariel was replaced by another red head, Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. We both loved the love story and would tell each other “Take Care of You” as the two girlfriends said to each other. And in West Side Story we would cry because Antonio and Maria couldn’t be together. We seemed to really bond over movies where the lovers had a serious challenge to overcome. Continue Reading →
Picture Above (Andrew, Terese, Kim, Jamie)
I (Andrew Cosentino) first met Jamie while working for Elyse Connolly in NYC during my senior year of college. Elyse had a very good friend at Sarah Lawrence College (where Jamie went) who recommended Jamie to work for Elyse as an assistant / producer. I was a bit hesitant about it, being the only guy in the office. But to my happiness, Jamie turned out to be a breath of fresh air. We got along quite well from the beginning. She had the same sense of humor I had. I soon learned we had a lot of interests in common…love of sports (fans of the Yankees, Giants and Rangers), love of family and friends and a strong work ethic. She made work fun. Days when she wasn’t there were noticeably different and stagnant. I feel I need to thank the powers that be that had me end up at Elyse’s office and at the same time that Jamie joined. Had I not, I feel I would’ve missed out on some of the most unique parts of my life. I deeply cherish the times we would stay at Elyse’s and open a bottle of wine or go to a bar after work and just talk…for hours. Jamie was the perfect person to talk to. She was so intelligent, so well versed, so insightful. Countless discussions about life, death, people, family, situations, food, ect. I felt she always had my back, but she’d be the first to speak her mind and put you in place if need be. Continue Reading →
I (Kennette Bryant) met Jamie for the first time about 9 years ago when she and Maureen came to San Diego as a stop on their cross country road trip. Dan had grown up with my husband Barry La Forgia and was Uncle Barry to their kids.
My first memory of Jamie is her walking around the hallway corner of our home, smile first. It was love at first sight with this young woman of dreams, hopes, struggles, and an honesty about who she was (good and bad). She was a year younger than my eldest son so there was a generational gap. But, Jamie taught me so much on the many levels that I learned age mattered little with friends. Her youthful perspective widened mine. I hope that in turn I did not drive her too crazy with my maternal advice and over protectiveness. You see, she lived with us for a time, and after moving out we still felt we were there to watch over her. She honored us by referring to us as her West Coast Parents.
Jamie brought us so much laughter, humor, passion and joy. We spent hours chatting over life’s meaning, wonderful authors, travels and its lessons, relationships. We struggled when she struggled and longed so desperately to see her fulfilled. Nothing delighted me more than watching her and Barry watching sports, yelling, cursing, drinking and laughing. No one appreciated Barr’s silly puns like Jamie could. She loved her safe cocoon at our home and then her small place in Del Mar, and when it was time to leave and blossom, she did it fully. Her friends in San Diego became steadfast, lifelong ones and they will all attest that when she accepted you in her heart, she never let you go willingly. It was so hard to watch her move back to New York, but I have never bid farewell to anyone with more anticipation and hope. She deserved so much more than she could find on the West Coast. Though she was always open to love and career path, she was certain that she would never find all she longed for. Continue Reading →
Picture Above (Andrew, Jamie, and Terese)
I (Terese) met Jamie through my boyfriend, Andrew, who was a close friend and coworker (with Elyse Connolly) of hers. I was very anxious to meet her, as Andrew said we were very similar and we’d hit it off. We tried a few times while she was living in Brooklyn, us in Queens, to get together but it never happened. Then early in 2003 we went to California to visit my family who lives in San Diego. Andrew and I met up with Jamie at a great Mexican place in Del Mar called En Fuego. We sat at the bar for a drink and some apps and ended up staying for hours, laughing, drinking, sharing stories. We bonded over our love for travel, taking pictures, Audrey Hepburn, how close we were with our family, the NY Yankees, our angst about what to make of our lives, our goal of being a successful working woman yet wanting a family more than anything, loving to talk (Andrew loved this, lol) and so on. Later on, Jamie and I would joke that it was like a successful first date for friends! We went on to see Jamie a couple of more times while she lived in California and when she came back to New York, we were able to get together a few times just hanging at our apartment, going for dinner or just drinking some wine and even fitting in a couple of Yankees games.
Really though, our friendship was one mostly by phone and email. Eventually Jamie and I talked more than Andrew and Jamie did. Sometimes I’d be on the phone with her and then pass news along or a funny story Jamie just told me and he’d say, why doesn’t she tell me this or that and she’d laugh and say through the phone, tell him to call me! Hearing Jamie’s voice, whether it be me that called her or her that called me, she’d say, HEY GIRL!, and our conversations would begin. Continue Reading →
Picture Above (Jamie left, Casey right) – The four of us were having too much fun to take pictures together, but I was able to find this shot from a video I took at John and Larkin’s 1st birthday.
My (Casey Tremewan) family moved to North Carolina from San Francisco in October of 2010. Our move was a leap of faith, in that we had no jobs, no daycare lined up; we moved into rental house that we had never seen before and although we a few acquaintances, we had no friends. Our gamble slowly began to pay off as we settled into our new lives. In February of 2011 my parents invited us to a dinner at their friends, the Kindem’s, house. They mentioned that there would be another couple there, the couple had just had twins. We were somewhat weary of this “set-up” but weren’t in a position to picky about meeting others.
We had a great time that night. I remember the instant connection between me and Bret and Paul and Jamie. I was thrilled to spend time holding John, so tiny at the time. Bret and I got home that night and commented on how great the whole family was. The next day Jamie friended me on Facebook. I remember the childish happiness that I felt when I “confirmed” her, I was so happy because it meant that they liked us too!
Soon after we began the periodic tradition of getting together on Saturday afternoons at Jamie and Paul’s house. It was always easiest for us to go to them, since our son was 3+ and we only had the one. It did not take long for us to fall into a predictable pattern – Continue Reading →
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