Please accept my condolences for your loss. Leona and Don meant the world to me. I first met Mr. and Mrs. Kibler when I was a teenager, attending my first art show in Dowagiac. They bought one of my paintings and from that moment on, in their eyes, I was the most amazing painter they had ever known. To me, they were nothing less than two angels who made a shy little boy feel incredible and blessed to live in this difficult world. You see, just a few years earlier, I had lost a beloved older brother, and began painting pictures as a way to cope with this unspeakable tragedy. And so began the journey, and there they were, appearing out of thin air, telling me to never give up. Over the next forty years, they kept in touch with me, and came to visit when they could; they would buy another painting, then another from an ever aging wannabe artist. As my hair faded away, and what remained, slowly turned grey, they still kept their vigil of devotion. Losing Don, was a heartbreak and yet, dear Leona, like a steady loving mother, kept her eye open for me; thinking about me. How can I ever express the loss of such an amazing example of Christian hope, charity and love? Thank you Mrs. Kibler, for believing in me. Thank you, for allowing me into your world. I wish I could have seen the look on your face, when you saw Don. But, I will see you again, dear friends. I will see you again.
