In Memory of Cassandra Yazzie-Hotchkiss

Great news! We’ve learned that Jason and Noah will be back home in Durango before the end of the month! Our sister, Rachel, asked me to see if I could scrounge up a group of volunteers to go help clean the house this weekend so that it’s ready for their return. Unfortunately, my wife and I will be out of town, but if there’s anyone who is around and able to help, that would be great. If there’s anyone who’d like to help coordinate, please comment on this post with your contact information and I’ll get in touch.

What needs to be done:

Whole House

• Carpets need to be shampooed and cleaned
• Windows could use a cleaning
• Dusting

Jason has specifically requested that his and Cas’s room be left exactly as it is until he can get home to go through everything

Kitchen

• I’m sure there are dishes that need doing
• Food needs to be sorted through, and expired items thrown out
• Counters cleaned
• Floor mopped

Living Room

• General Cleaning
• Slip covers for couches need to be washed

Handyman – If anyone has the time, skills, and inclination, there are a number of handyman things that could be done, including:

• Misc. damaged trim, banisters, etc.  It is of special importance that the bannister to the upstairs is sturdy, as Noah will be maintaining his room on the second floor, so he will be using it quite a bit in his efforts to get up and down the stairs
• Paint?  I know the interior could use a fresh coat of paint, if someone wanted to take this on, it might really help make the house feel fresh and welcoming.
• Wheelchair ramp– we need to figure out a good way to get Noah in and out of the house– maybe the best way to do this would be to make some space in the garage, remove the stairs from the house into the garage, and replace them with a ramp– that way we won’t have to worry about snow and ice.  I’m sure someone handier than I might have some good insight here.

I’m sure I’ve missed some things that could be cleaned or fixed– if you see something that looks like it could use some help (outside of the master suite), feel free to fix it up!

Thank you, everyone, for your outpouring of love and support, your response has been overwhelming and has been very helpful through this ordeal, and your thoughts and prayers have helped Jason and the kids more than you will ever know.

12/22/09

I wanted to give everyone an update from Denver.  The best news is that Dante was discharged on Friday.  He returned home with his grandparents on Saturday.  They arrived home to many gifts and a good amount of snow.  As with Amada I am happy to see him recovering so well but sad to see him go home without us.  We miss him he is such a strong little boy who, like his brother and Mom, lights up the room with his great smile.  Roger and Terry are such great grandparents to him and this tragedy has brought us all much closer.  We are all working on a plan to ensure that his Mom’s wishes for him will be carried out in the best possible ways.                           Amada is continuing to get better as well she got to spend several days with her friends at school before the break.  Gramma and Grampa are having a good go of it trying to keep up with her.  With the physical stuff healing very well she is moving on to the real work of grieving.  It is difficult to explain the relationship her and Cas had.  They pushed one another to grow and both respected that ability the other had to do that.  Cas  was a Mentor to Amada in the truest sense of the word.  She inspired her to be all the good things that she was born to be and I have no doubt that Cas is the foundation for the strong native woman Amada will become.

Noah, David and I are preparing for our Christmas here in Denver.  We find ourselves surrounded by new friends and old friends who amaze us with their generous spirits.  My sister Rachel is back up here helping in her special way.  She has been such a rock for us her sincerity and humor are a unique gift.  Noah adores her ( she has even taught him how to cheat at uno).   Noah continues to improve.  He is facing the situation with true courage.  He recently corrected the doctors diagnosis by telling them “  Really I have a 50/50 chance of recovering”  to which the doctors looked quite concerned and asked him how he came to that conclusion?  Noah said “ Either I’ll walk or I won’t  that’s 50/50”

His physical therapy is pretty intense and takes up most of the day.  He is working hard  to learn how to  independently do everything he did before.  He is an inspiration to everyone who is working with him and I have never been prouder of my son!

David and Noah are also good support for each other.  They have been having epic wii battles.  Whoa…  while I was just sitting here Noah got mad and frustrated while dressing and moved both his legs and both his feet.  I got his physical therapist and he was moving both legs and feet on cue.  Please let’s keep the prayers strong for my boy!!!!!!!

I miss Cas so much.  I am trying my best to live the life she wanted me to live and take care of the vision she had for each of our children and for the youth in general.  She is the best thing that ever happened to me.

Thanks to my friend Ashley we got to go behind the scenes at the Denver zoo on Thursday.  In October Cas and I and the Kids had all gone there as a family and had a great time.  So it was a little hard on both of us to go back there.  But as it got dark and they put on their amazing  Christmas light display.  We rode around and it was heavenly( I am using that word literally)  It’s hard to explain but we all felt Cas’  presence and it is always a peaceful feeling.

We continue to be blown away by the love and support shown for our family,  from the staff and admin at Childrens to the Durango Community and the kids’ schools,  we are honored and humbled by the grace we are living under.

Thank you all from the depth of our being,

Jason, Alicia, David, Noah, Amada and dante

Family sweat day

This photo was taken at our wedding in June of this year. It’s a wonderful photo, and a rare one on this day, too, since Cassandra filmed our wedding video and was busy being behind the camera herself. Just thought I would share it.

This article was sent to us by its author, Mari Villaluna, of POOR Magazine Online.

Article about Cass.

Thank you for sharing, Mari.

While I have a few minutes here this morning I thought I would jot down what’s been going on.  As recent updates have said Amada is home which is great  other than the fact that we miss her so much.  After a tragedy like this I just want to be right next to my kids at all times.  She is doing very well considering.  Her grief over Cassandra seems to be playing out in a  way that would make Cas proud.   The two of them saw themselves in one another and when amada was asked what she wanted for Christmas she knew right away, a video camera!  Cas would say sometimes that the only thing more dangerous than an Indian Lawyer was an Indian with a Video Camera.

Dante is out of Intensive care!  If you could see the difference between him one week ago and today you would have a hard time denying the power of prayer.  He is going to be fine.   He isn’t talking too much yet but that is really his character.  We still have a tough road ahead explaining to him about his mom.  He was so happy to be coming to live with us and you could really feel his little heart being made whole again with him reuniting with his mom and brother in our family.   I am working with Roger and Terry as best as I know how to see that his mom’s wishes for him are carried out.  That he grows to know his culture and people.  That he can experience the amazing and powerful impact his mom had through her friends and mentors.  That he knows the power that honest and sincere prayer carries with it and that he has that in his little toolbox for life.

Noah is our hero.  I have received several emails from the first people to arrive on the scene and the EMTS who have all expressed this.  He had dialed 911 and kept his siblings calm until help arrived at which point he was able to give them all of our information.  After several weeks Noah has not regained feeling in his legs.  The doctors have classified his injury as complete.  Statistically people with complete spinal chord injuries have a 3% chance of regaining function below the point of injury.  There is no easy way to tell this to a boy whose dream was to play professional soccer.  He is an athletic kid a rad snowboarder, rock climber, mountain biker, kayaker an all around Durango kid.  Best of all Noah is a hard worker.  That being said we’ll take 3%.  In reality there was a much smaller chance of him becoming a professional soccer player yet he was willing to work hard to achieve that goal.  We’ll take 3% and pile on top of it all of our prayers and community support and we will work hard to achieve that goal.  More than ever I am realizing that the treasures in life are in the hard work more than the results or in the words of that incredible songstress Miley Cyrus “ It’s the climb”(Amada’s favorite).

I want to note here as well that Roger, Terry, my kids’ Mom Kimberly and Dante’s Father Chad have all been heroic themselves.  In the mess of relationships that a blended family brings everyone has been supportive and kind to one another which is something that Cas was always so good at fostering.

As  for myself,  I have always felt as if I was living between two worlds and that has just been amplified.   This aspect of my character has always been something I have struggled with and like most things in life has its good parts and bad parts.   I am obviously devastated by losing my best friend and wife, the consequences of which become more and more real everyday.  At the same time I have never had such strong glimpses of heaven on earth, of Cas leading me and being part of all of the creation around me in the wind and the snow, this is also becoming more and more real to me each day.   I hope I can find the words someday to express my thankfulness when I consider the gifts that she gave to me.  As well as the thankfulness for the thoughts and prayers of all of those who have reached out to us in thought and prayer.  From my oldest friends, the Kashatus’,  the Cate School Community, our many Church Families,  our Native American church Family,  Indian Country as a whole( who knows and understands these tragedies all too well).  I have never been a rich man but we have been incredibly blessed with friends and family.  Bless all of you.