Planning a funeral is probably not easy under the best of circumstances, but this is definitely the hardest thing I have ever done.  It’s not hard because the decisions are difficult, it’s hard because they are decisions a parent should never have to make.  I cannot express enough thanks to our family for stepping up, and sometimes stepping in, to make sure that we are able to get through this.  Every time there is a question that comes up it seems as though my Uncle George has already anticipated it and provided an appropriate answer or resource to use if needed.  My cousin’s wife, Rene, has also acted as a personal assistant to Julie and me, making sure that we are where we need to be when we need to be there, and gently making sure that we are covering everything.  I honestly don’t know how we would manage this without them, or the rest of our family and friends who are helping with all of those other things that would have distracted us from what we really need to do.