Deanna was truly a woman who put faith into action. I have never felt such a great sense of loss and yet a great sense of joy.  To know Dee is with the one who loved her the most and whom she longed to walk and talk with gives me joy beyond words.  Knowing I will not have another long late night conversation with her, where we would laugh and sometimes cry together makes tears flow unstoppable from my eyes and gives me sorrow beyond words.  Also, knowing that I will be with her again when we are all in the presence of the Lamb of God takes me back to the great joy.  
           
Dee was by far one of the strongest believers in the finished work of Christ on her behalf.  The way she lived her life showed that.  Through all her life trials and there were many I never heard her doubt or waver in the faith.  She knew God loved her and she kept going even when no one would follow with her.  She took seriously the plight of hurting people and was willing to lay down her own needs and wants for others.

In a recent conversation she said, “I can’t wait to go home to my Lord.”  He must have heard her heart and blessed her with that desire.

I remember the first time I met Dee.  She came to a Bill Glass prison weekend, our first in Ohio the summer of 2001.  While on her way her car broke down, surprise surprise.  Doug had to go pick her up in his 1963 police car and there the adventure began.  From the moment we got together that week-end she was in our hearts forever.
           
Deanna never had a child of her own, but every child she came to know received love from her, that fact was evident when she became involved with the Dream Center.

She heard of what we were doing at the Dream Center and loved the Adopt a Block program and jumped in full force. There were four little boys on the block she joined that became so attached to Dee that you hardly saw Dee Dee around the block or Dream Center with out them.  She took them to church, to youth group, Burger King, and on many adventures.  We called them the BC kids (BC, Behaviorally Challenged or Before Christ) but most would just call them bad children, but not Dee. Her dream was to make a difference in their lives and I believe she did.  We will all miss our beautiful Deanna immensely, but the void in these four young men’s lives will be tremendous.  I know they are heart broken and I pray a kind gentleman who loves the Lord will take up Dee’s cause of seeing them become the men God created them to be.

Almost lastly, I can say Dee Dee never met an animal she did not love and care for.  Not being an animal lover myself, this I did not understand, but she even put herself in harms way for God’s creatures although I did once cheer for my wonderful husband who rescued a dog from a cliff.

Lastly, if you are reading this you probably knew my friend Deanna; I just hoped you got to know her because she was someone worth knowing.  She would say though, “Christ is the only one worth knowing.”  Doug and I will not be with the family to celebrate her eternal birth into His Kingdom and this I am sad about.  We thought about delaying our R&R to Mexico, but each time we talked about it I could hear Dee Dee say,”are you crazy, I am with the Master, take a break”.  That is just how she was always thinking of others.  God, I loved that girl.

Nancy Koorey