“Love Makes Loss Bearable”

Brian FitzGerald – Thank you for creating such an amazing website! I can’t thank you enough for the countless hours of work you put in to making my vision come to life. You clearly put a great deal of thought into every aspect of this site, and your web development and graphic design skills are just incredible. You are a great friend, family member and person. Much love.

Kathryn – Thank you for all the help with the website. Your input and attention to detail brought the site to a whole new level. More importantly, thank you for helping me get through the aftermath of Jamie’s death. You were there with me for almost every tough decision or difficult task and you gave me the support and confidence I needed to feel I was making the right decisions. Your strength, courage, and ability to persevere through tough situations is inspiring and was incredibly helpful. I am so thankful my children and I have you in our lives.

Mom & Dad (Hap & Nan Kindem) – Thank you for teaching me the proper morals and values and for always being there for me, especially now, when I have needed you most. The two of you taught each one of us boys what’s actually important in life and how to be genuine people. I have always admired the love the two or you share and am very thankful to have you as my parents. Thank you for being such loving, supportive and caring parents.

Dan & Maureen O’Brien – Thank you for raising such a wonderful daughter & for always being there for Jamie and I and our children. I’m grateful for the bond we have always had, and am thankful that Jamie and I had the opportunity to spend so much time with the two of you during our short five years (we sure made some great memories together). It’s no wonder to me why Jamie was such an amazing person and I enjoy seeing first hand where she got so many of her inspiring attributes from. Thanks for being you.

Immediate Family – Thank you Pete, Sase, Tom, Stacey, Kathryn, Doug & Nessa for being there for me and for each other. Your constant love and support has been and continues to be critical for my mental health and I am so thankful to have each one of you as family members. You are the best family someone can have and knowing my children and I will have all of you to learn from, gain support from, and create lasting memories with gives me the strength to continue being the best person and father I can be. Thank you.

Joel Dobson – Thank you for being such a good friend. Thank you for calling me on a daily basis and coming to hang out with me whenever I needed a companion. Whether it was meeting up for a beer, playing golf, or just sitting on my deck looking up at the stars, you were there for me.

Extended Family & Friends – There are way too many people to thank in this category, but thank you for the incredible love and support you have given me over these last many months. Your letters, cards, phone calls, meals, donations, and gifts helped the O’Brien-Kindem families get by and reminded us that there is still a lot of good in this world. Thank you for your constant love and support.

SAS (Jamie’s former company) and UNC Management Company (Paul’s company) – Thank you for going above and beyond the call of duty as employers & corporations. The amount of support, flexibility, and love you have shown my family and me during these difficult times has been extraordinary and will not be forgotten. Thank you for applying such great company values and for hiring so many caring and amazing people. Special thanks to Sheila Mullen at UNCMC for setting up and managing the CareCalendar and for checking in on the family so frequently.