Yesterday our house was so full of love… i lost count of the number of people who came through the house. Everyone had such great stories of Sam. It’s so hard to beleive that he’s not goign to walk in the door in a few minutes. Last night I went out to the barn. I needed to be alone for a few minutes and ‘talk’ to sam in my heart. As I walked out of the door to come back to the house, the largest and brightest shooting star I have ever seen came direcctly over my head and streaked into the northern sky. It gave me such a cool sense of peace. I came back in to the house and went to sleep.
Today Sam’s obit will appear in the paper and many more folks will first hear the news about Sam. It hurts to know that so many folks will feel that new pain. Here’s what we put in the paper:
SAM MARIANO COHN RICHMOND – Sam Cohn, 14, from Richmond, died this past week as a result of a traffic accident while on vacation with friends in Florida. He died while having fun and felt no pain or fear. He was born May 28, 1992, and grew up and lived in Richmond and loved this place. You could often see him swinging off the rope swing at the Jonesville Bridge, tubing down the Winooski or pulling a Cork-7 on his snowboard at Bolton. Sam was the beautiful son of John Cohn and Diane Mariano and brother of Max and Gabe Cohn. He is also missed by his loving grandparents, Gabe and Marcia Mariano of Endicott, N.Y.; and Hugh and Judy Cohn of Sherborn, Mass.; and his aunts, uncles and cousins: Joe and Pat Mariano and their children Victor and Vincent of Endicott, N.Y.; Steve and Denise Mariano and their children Stephanie, Elizabeth and Michael of Leavenworth, Kansas.; Dr. Billy and Shaun Cohn and their children Ben, Betsy, Billy, Berto and Christopher of Houston, Texas; and Dr. John Liddicoat and Mary and their daughter, Ellery of Minneapolis, Minn. Chaibaby, his dog, misses him, too. Sam packed so much living into his 14 years. He was beautiful both inside and out. Sam was the living epitome of the old proverb, “live each day to the fullest as if it were your last.” He held true to these words by being absolutely passionate about everything and anything he did in his life. He was a natural athlete, amazing snowboarder and gifted musician. He was as comfortable drumming in his hardcore band as playing Bach on his classical guitar. Sam had a 1,000-watt smile that he wore constantly. He was such a real and honest person that friendship came easily to him. His circle of friends knew no bounds of age, clique or interest. Sam will live on in the hearts and memories of the many, many folks whose lives he touched. Sam will also live on in the four people whose lives he saved through the organs he donated. That was just so Sam! We are planning several ways to honor Sam’s memory. We will be holding visiting hours at our home, The Old Jonesville Schoolhouse at 20 Duxbury Road in Richmond, from 4 to 10 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 30. There will also be a benefit concert in Sam’s memory at the Monitor Barn, Route 2, Richmond, from 6 to 10 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 1. We are also planning a celebration of Sam’s life at Memorial Auditorium at 250 Main St., Burlington, on Saturday, Dec. 2, beginning at 4:30 p.m. The celebration will include stories about Sam, multimedia presentations and live music by many of Sam’s musical friends. Dress is grunge casual. After the celebration there will be a potluck dinner downstairs in Memorial Auditorium. Please bring a dish or drinks to share if you can. Many friends are also using Sam’s MySpace (www.myspace.com/bree_bree_roarororf) as a place to share their thoughts. Please go there and add your comments. In lieu of flowers, please hug your kids, family and friends very hard and do something really good for someone else. If you wish to do more than that, you can donate in Sam’s memory to the John Cohn and Diane Mariano Foundation, c/o Oppenheimer Funds Legacy Program, P.O. Box 173673, Denver, CO 802173673 (a registered charitable trust). We plan to be using donations to set up scholarships based on need for Camp Abnaki, Burlington Rock Camp, and Bolton Mountain Snowboarding — all things that Sam really loved. Words cannot express the sadness we feel in losing Sam. Neither can they express the love and pride we feel for having him as a son, brother, and friend. We are grateful and amazed at the love and support of our family and friends and the community, and we are sure Sam is as well. Those of you who knew and loved Sam like we do, please help us to keep Sam’s spirit alive. Help us celebrate a short life lived full. We love you, Sam, always.