Emily Marie Titus

Emily Marie Titus  

A tribute to Emily to express our gratitude for all the gifts that you gave us and for staying with us for as long as you did:

Emily Marie Titus, age 46, daughter of Pat and Kirk Titus and sister of Jessica Titus and Sarah Titus-Smith, died on Sunday, April 24th in the arms of all her family who loved her dearly.

Emily was born on a beautiful day on August 12, 1975 in Wolfeboro, NH, the youngest daughter of Pat and Kirk and the baby of the family. The first two years of her life were filled with joy and wonder. She was one of those children who just woke up every day with a smile on her face and a sunny disposition.  Although her life as she knew it changed abruptly at the age of two she grew up surrounded by love and beauty and lived an extraordinary life despite overwhelming odds.

Emily lived with her family who loved her to the moon and back for her entire life. She had a beautiful room built just for her with big windows looking out over a yard filled with flowers and birds, frequent bears, deer and an occasional moose.  She enjoyed holidays, family birthdays, weddings, and annual vacations to Martha’s Vineyard.  In recent years she accompanied her family on summer trips to their cottage on Triggs Island on Lake Wentworth riding on the pontoon boat with the wind blowing on her face. There she would listen to the loons and the water lapping the shore as the light of the moon traveled across the sky and shone through her window.

While Emily never spoke again, she communicated her emotions in the most profound ways.  While she never walked again, she could move mountains with her presence. In truth, she was the strongest, most courageous person we have ever known.  She was the guru of mindfulness before the word was coined. She knew the sound of the hummingbirds at her window, the beauty of the monarch butterfly, the scent of a freshly cut rose, the aromas coming from the kitchen of her Mom’s pies and her Dad’s dinners, the warmth of the sun on her face and the gentle touch of her family’s hands on her so soft skin. And she never said no to a hug. She was also a captive listener and had hundreds of novels read to her and thousands of songs played for her over the years.

While Emily never received a formal education, she knew things we will never know and taught us more than we could ever have imagined.  She gave us a reason to get up in the morning and be our very best selves.  She made us all better people while teaching us so many lessons about what matters most, the importance of love and family, empathy and compassion, strength, honor and commitment.

Our hearts are broken and our lives will never be the same. The pain of her loss is deep and most certainly everlasting. Our only solace is knowing that she is whole again, free and at peace. We are hopeful that she is now in the arms of all the special people who loved her and preceded her in death. Emily has only one task left and that is to help us find our way without her.

Emily leaves behind her loving parents, Pat and Kirk, her beloved sisters, Jessica and Sarah, her brothers-in-law, Dan Van Dorn and Karl Smith and her five nieces and nephews, Samuel, Grace Emily and Jack Smith, and Brynn and Emmy Van Dorn. She also leaves her uncle Dick Mullen, aunt Teresa Mahoney-Mullen, aunt Barbara and uncle Russ Shaw, and many cousins.  She leaves special caregivers, past and present, Karen Willett, Sarah Silk, Trish Bradley, Ingrid Albee and Terry Flynn Sullivan.  Special friends Laura Lovett, Jane Walsh, Nancy Jackson, Lora Frazier and Henry Mellynchuk, and countless other friends too numerous to name who stayed the course and never gave up on her.

Emily was predeceased by her grandparents Barbara and Frederick Mullen and Barbara and Kirk Titus, and Her uncle Bill Mullen.

We also wish to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the incredibly skilled and compassionate Huggins Hospital staff who always treated Emily and her family with dignity and respect.

Calling hours will be at the family home on 54 Furber Lane, Wolfeboro, NH on Friday, May 6th from 2:00 to 7:00pm.  A funeral service will be held at St. Katharine Drexel Church, Alton, NH on Saturday May 7th at 11:00am.  Burial will be at the Lakeview Cemetery at 2:00pm.

If you wish to express a condolence or share a fond memory go to www.lordfuneralhome.com.

To make a donation in Emily’s memory please consider Compassionate Care ALS or the Dana Farber Cancer Institute

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Emily Marie Titus, please visit our floral store.