American Heart Association Walk in Memory of Thomas Moates

Monday, October 06, 2008
American Heart Association Walk (In Honor Of Tom Moates)
When my dear friend, Kim, asked me to walk with her in the American Heart Association Walk on Saturday, September 20th, I didn't even hesitate in making this commitment to her. You see, my good friends Kim & Kelly lost their father, Tom Moates, a few months ago from a heart attack. The news of him passing away was shocking to everybody who knew him. Tom Moates was the epitome of what health should look like. He was in his early fifties, was in great shape, exercised regularly, wasn't a smoker, and he was conscientious about the types of food he put in his body. Tom never went to the doctor because he was never sick. Little did he know, that genetics was causing him to have a lethal level of LDL cholesterol circulating in his blood. This caused stenosis (hardening) of his arteries and damaged his heart. After the autopsy was performed, the doctor told Kelly and Kim that he believed Tom had suffered a minor stroke earlier in his life, but he was probably unaware that this happened.

I first met Tom when I was fourteen years old. One of the many benefits of being friends with Kelly and Kim as a teenager was being able to meet their amazing family members! I remember Tom being a person who always tried to make me laugh, and his smile lit up a room. Everybody who knew Tom automatically loved him. He was a 'people-person' who genuinely cared about others. There are many facts that I could share with you about Tom, but the most important thing that I want to stress is that he was a very GOOD man! He was also a dedicated and loving father to both of his daughters! Both Kelly and Kim had a very strong relationship with their father. They saw each other frequently, and Kim was known to exchange communication through numerous phone calls a day with him. It is a tragedy that he has suffered such an untimely demise, but with that said, he has left such an amazing legacy. I attended his funeral, and it was a true testament of Tom's character and how much he impacted other peoples' lives when so many of his friends, co-workers, and family members showed up to pay tribute to him! I was also impressed that many of Kim's co-workers took time out to show their support for Kim. She works with a tight-knit group of people at the USF Police Department, and it gave me goosebumps to see these men and women in uniform showing their support for Kim.

What do you say to somebody who has just lost one of the most important people in their life? I just love Kim and Kelly so much, and I just want to fix everything for them! I know that nothing I could ever say would bring Kim and Kelly's dad back. I did make sure to express to both of them how much I love them, and how much it breaks my heart to see them suffering. All I know is that I vowed to be there for Kim & Kelly if either of them wanted to vent, scream, cry.... whatever! So, that is what I've tried to do! With Kim living so close to me, it has made it easier for me to 'be there' for her in whatever capacity she needs me. I have tried to be the best friend that I can be to her. I have known Kim and her sister Kelly for 18 years now, and they are both very important people to me. I just wish there was something that I could do to mend their broken hearts! I can empathize with Kim and Kelly's anguish because I know what it is like to lose a dad. My own dad died when I was fifteen years old. Time does help to heal the heart a bit, but there is always a hole there! I miss my daddy too!!

The night before the Heart Walk, Kim came over to my house, and we made t-shirts to honor her dad. It was a challenging project trying to get the kids to place their feet in paint, and then distribute it evenly to the back of their t-shirts. In all seriousness, it was fun to be creative! I've never been an artsy-fartsy type of a person, but I had a really good time with Kim, even when the kids were covering my garage with little purple footprints! LOL! We laughed and joked during our night of arts and crafts! But, one of the conversations we had was quite deep! I talked about how my father has revealed himself to me throughout the years. I know-- I know.. I already told you folks that my dad is deceased, but he has 'revealed' himself to me in many ways. There have been times that it has been really odd to feel his presence, and yet, it is also very comforting. I know that my dad still watches over me, and there are things that have happened that are just too coincidental for my dad not to have had his hand in it! I told Kim about this, and my daughter Allie overheard us talking about it. Allie asked more about this. Being 11 years old, she is very inquisitive about life in general. I didn't want to go into too many details with her. I wanted to keep it pretty simple for her to understand; because some of the stories I could tell you about my dad are just really, really weird. So, I just told Allie that sometimes your loved ones who have passed away will communicate with you in dreams. Also, there might be things here on earth that remind you of your loved one who died, and that thing might appear out of nowhere at weird times. You could look up into the sky and see a cloud formation that looks like that thing, or sometimes you just get goosebumps over something that reminds you of your loved one! Then, I told her about one story when I felt my dad's presence. I told her that one day I was running and it was a hot, humid day outside. I was about 19 years old, and although it had been 4 years since my dad had passed away, I was really missing my dad on this particular day. I asked God to tell my dad that I loved him and missed him. Right after I said that prayer, out of nowhere a gush of wind blew through my hair! I know it may sound silly to many of you that I believe a gush a wind was my dad showing me that he loved me, but at that time, it reassured me that my dad was in Heaven and looking over me. It was the reassurance that I needed at that time in my life to get through that one day! I continued telling Allie that these small things can be your loved ones who have passed away showing 'LOVE' for you. I truly believe that God allows this to happen. The Bible tells me that GOD IS LOVE!!! So, I can't imagine that God would withhold love from my dad's spirit in heaven and not allow him to communicate with me in some way, shape, or form.

The next day, I had to wake the kids up around 5:10 a.m. The Heart Walk was in Bartow, Florida. This is approximately 60 miles away from where we live. The event started at 7:30, and we didn't want to be late. I was going to follow Kim down to the event. When I walked outside with the kids, I said to them, "There appears to be a problem? Where is the sun?" LOL! It was early, folks! I didn't even hear the rooster crow yet. Being up this early is just not right! I even joked with Kim about this! With all joking aside, the fact of the matter is that if I had to get up at 3:30 in the morning, I would have done it for Kim! We did make a pitstop to get some coffee. Anybody who truly knows me can tell you that I have to get coffee in me or I am useless. So, I was thankful to get my 'fix.' I experienced a burst of energy, and we were on the open road.

When we arrived to the event, I didn't realize what a huge event this was going to be!!! This is a rough estimate, but I would have to say there were around 6000 people in attendance. I saw a lot of homemade t-shirts being worn by the participants in the Heart Walk. It was quite obvious that heart disease, being one of the leading causes of death, had taken so many lives. There were about 50 people (possibly more) who showed up to walk specifically for Tom Moates. It was such a beautiful way to honor Kim's dad! Again, this man was loved by everybody who knew him! The event was planned very well. There were a lot of informative people at booths to help spread the word about heart disease. There was a 'bouncy house,' and the kids really enjoyed jumping themselves to the point of exhaustion! Hula hoops, jump ropes, and other games were made available for the little one's enjoyment. There was a d.j. from a radio station who was the commentator of the event, and he announced many names of people who had lost excessive amounts of weight to increase their well-being and their overall health. It was quite inspiring! We were told to stretch a little. As Kim was stretching, she leaned down to tie her shoes. Out of nowhere, the most beautiful butterfly landed on Kim's shoulder. It fluttered its wings while perched on her shoulder. It gave me goosebumps because we were just talking about things that happen that will remind you that your loved one is watching over you. I don't think that Tom's spirit had manifested itself into a butterfly, but I do think that Tom and God made sure that a butterfly landed on Kim's shoulder, not on mine, or anybody elses! It was rather spectacular to witness this! Even Allie said that she got goosebumps when the butterfly was on Kim. A few minutes later, the whistle blew to announce that the WALK was officially beginning. I am a jogger; it is just my nature, and I did find it a bit hard not to bust out into a run. In fact, at one point, I was skipping with Ashley for a little bit, and Kim's dad's boss said, "Stop showing off." LOL! He was a really cool guy, and I enjoyed chatting with him throughout our walk. The park that we walked through was gorgeous. There was a big lake that was lined with green grass and beautiful trees. There was a slight breeze in the air. It really was the first sign of the FALL season. I could smell Autumn in the air!! At the end of our 4 mile walk, there was a bubble blower, and David loved running through the bubbles. We hung around for a little while after that, but then it was time to say our goodbyes to Kim. She thanked my kids and me for coming out to honor her dad. I felt so much emotion from her when she said this, and it really hit the inner core of my being.

I was so happy to be a part of this. I experienced a natural high that was indescribable. Part of writing this all out was to share my wonderful experience with everybody, but the other part was to do my part and spread awareness of heart disease! Please do me a favor! If you haven't seen your doctor in awhile, go and get a physical. Get labwork done to ensure that your cholesterol levels are within a healthy range. Most insurance companies will cover an annual physical that includes bloodwork, even for adults. Heart disease not only breaks the heart of the patient suffering from it, but it also breaks the heart of those who lose a loved one from it!