It is always hard to wrap our heads around the death of a young person who dies in the prime of her life, leaving behind infant twins born just two months beforehand along with 5 other children. I feel so devastated for her husband and their grieving children, some who will never know their mother.

As the year began, we started to get donations in lieu of flowers to honor this lovely lady, Leah Shofron Rice.

I had to wait for the obituary to find out what happened and when I read this endearing piece, I wept for the sheer all consuming loss this family would be dealing with for a very long time to come.

Below is her obituary, so profoundly written in her honor.

“How can words on paper ever amount to even a fraction of the impact that Leah left on everyone she met? No words could ever do her justice. But in the end, we all become stories. And Leah and her story were one of a kind.

Mother, Wife, Sister, Daughter, Granddaughter, Aunt and Friend, she was so much to so many. Leah made friends everywhere she went and once she let you into her heart, you were forever her family. Our guiding light, our beacon and really the hub of everything, Leah left us suddenly and unexpectedly on Jan 2, 2022.

Born in Tucson, AZ on November 13th, 1978, Leah was a firecracker from Day One. Always with a sparkle in her eye and with such a giving heart, she wasn’t bossy, she just knew her way was the right way!

Wicked smart and wise well beyond her years, nothing was more important to Leah than her family and everything she did, she did in a great, big way.

Adventuring with her 7-year-old son, Parker was her absolute favorite pastime. The two were as close as any mother and son could be. Soul mates.

After years of wishing, hoping and praying, Leah and her husband Dave welcomed beautifully perfect twins, Ella and Franklin on November 10, 2021, and Parker was promoted to “Big Brother.”

Leah is survived by her husband, Dave, son Parker (7), newborn twins, Franklin and Ella, and 4 step-children, Emily, Matt, Andy and Abby. She is also survived by both her parents, Helen Locascio (Tom) and Mark Shofron (Joni).

Left with fond and colorful memories are Leah’s three sisters, Tania Brasfield (Brian), Karen Shofron and Ann-Marie Marchildon-Fletcher (John), as well as two brothers, Zachary Shofron and Jacob Shofron.

She also leaves two nephews, Blake Brasfield (9) and Beckett Brasfield (7) and two Grandmothers, Patricia Horn and Dolores Ray.

All of the family and friends, too numerous to list, but so important, and all who all have been touched by Leah’s luminous light.

Leah, we wish your time with us could have been longer. We know you wouldn’t want us to mourn, but instead celebrate you having lived and your loving, generous spirit that carries on in your children. Until we meet again.

If you feel compelled to honor Leah’s memory, donations may be sent to:The Foundation for Grieving Children – https://www.foundationforgrievingchildren.org/donate/ or

Leah Shofron Rice Memorial Education Fund Hosted by Aunt Karen Shofron https://www.gofundme.com/manage/leah-rice-memorial-education

We’d like to thank the following individuals who donated to the Foundation for Grieving Children in honor of Leah:

Krishna Madane, Elizabeth Clement, Nancy and Brian Quint and an anonymous donor

We are sending our love to the Rice family and all their extended family and friends who grieve her loss.

If you’d like to see a wonderful gathering to celebrate Leah’s life, you can go here.