Dan O'Neill

"This morning I was trying to explain to a friend of mine who didn't know Michelle the kind of person that she was. And as I was doing so I couldn't help but think back to over a year ago. I was going through something incredibly difficult in my life, something I've only shared with two people, Michelle being one of them. Late one night, I was standing on a "ledge" feeling defeated, and suddenly I get a text message from Michelle "DAN O'NEILL!!!!". We started to talk, and I just said what was going on without even thinking about the fact that I was now burdening her with this. She immediately called me on the phone, and we talked for a long time. For the next week or so, I heard from her every single day.

Fast forward a month or so, a mutual friend told me that Michelle was diagnosed with cancer, but this friend wasn't sure if she wanted everyone to know. I promised not to say anything, but, I just needed to check in, so I sent Michelle a text "OWENS!!!!!" (we tended to shout at each other as a greeting). And even though she was dealing with this sudden and impactful change in her life, the absolute first thing that she did was to check on me and see how I was doing. Not a word about her situation, just "how are you holding up Dan?". Incredible!! After I assured her that I was ok, I asked how she was doing, and that is when she told me. We then talked on the phone for a while. I told her that "you are going to kick its ass Michelle! You know why? Cuz you're an absolute badass!" And that became my battle cry every time we touched base. "OWENS!!!!! How's my badass doing today?!?!?" And then I proceeded to try to lift her spirits with pictures and videos of my dogs.

This is what I thought of when trying to explain to my friend today who Michelle was and what she meant to me. I said that she was like no other. Michelle was one of those special people in this world who could make you feel better about yourself simply by talking with you, like you could take on any challenge in life. And that incredible smile was bright enough to light up anyone's spirit. I will miss our serious conversations, I will miss our silly

conversations, I will miss shouting at each other "DAN O'NEILL.......OWENS!!!!!!", I will miss our battle cry of "Badass!", I will miss her smile, and I will miss my friend Michelle."