Read personal stories from our founder and Jennifer's mommy, Libby, along with other Warrior Moms and news from our Unravel team.

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May 9, 2014

First time public speaking tonight. Excited but nervous. .. My hope is just that I make a impact.

I went for a run this morning. I haven’t done that in awhile.. been loving Cross Fit too much. But I am really glad I did. It centered me.. and relaxed me too.

Thank you to Mamas night out for believing in me enough to give me this opportunity.

Next week is the 5k here in Gilroy hosted by Arms Wide Open. I will speak a little there too .. and at least half of those proceeds go directly to the Jennifer Lynn Kranz fund at Stanford. Please consider joining us if you are able. Its a super kid friendly event. All of ours will be there. I am really really hopeful I will feel our eldest there that day too.

wish me luck!

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  1. Sarah P says:

    Good luck tonight! You are such a captivating speaker, I think you will do an amazing job. I’m glad that you have the opportunity to share Jennifer’s story at two great events. <3

  2. Rosie says:

    Good luck Libby! You are always in my thoughts.

  3. Kristen says:

    GOOD LUCK!! Tonight!
    I will be at the 5k next weekend! Go Libby you got this!

  4. Beth says:

    Best of luck, Libby! I’m sure you will do great and continue to make a positive impact.

  5. Andrea says:

    Good Luck!

  6. Heidi says:

    Good Luck tonight! You will do great! You are amazing!

  7. Jody says:

    Good luck Libby! I wish I could be there to hear you talk tonight. I know Jennifer’s story will touch and affect everyone in the room.

  8. Nazy says:

    Good luck Libby! Wish I could be there but will be thinking of you and know you’ll do fantastic!

  9. Danielle says:

    Good luck hun!! You’re gonna do great. Wish I lived closer so I could come to some of these events!

  10. Emily says:

    Good luck tonight! Let her help guide your words! I am so looking forward to the 5k next week!

  11. Emily says:

    I also hope these two events continue to fuel your fire for the nonprofit! 🙂

  12. Sarah says:

    Good luck! I’m certain you’ll be amazing, but I understand that it must be a bit nerve wracking.

  13. Silvia says:

    Good luck, Libby. You will be great, you always are!

  14. Jennifer says:

    Best of luck to you! You will be great!!

  15. Shelly says:

    Good luck! You got this!

  16. Rosalina says:

    I will be there 😉 with my friend and our daughters 😉

  17. Esther M, says:

    Goog Luck Libby! You got this! xoxoxo

  18. Esther M, says:

    *Good

  19. christine says:

    You’re going to be amazing and everyone who hears you speak will fall in love with your sweet girl and want to do something to help you and Jennifer make an impact in finding a cure.

  20. Kari says:

    Good luck! Please know that you already are making an impact. A huge one.

  21. Julia Scott says:

    I have no doubt you will do wonderfully.

  22. Fiona says:

    I will be there cheering you on!

  23. Noreen says:

    Libby,

    Looking forward to seeing you at the Arms Wide Open event. Your strength to speak and share with us is truly amazing. Lots of love, Noreen

  24. Stacey Benn says:

    Good Luck! No doubt in my mind – you will make a HUGE impact with your words – as you already have here with your blog!

  25. Lori B says:

    My friend and I will be there tonight, covering you in prayer and cheering you on. Mama’s Night Out is a perfect place to start, surrounded by other moms who are showing they care, simply by being there. You and JLK will do a super job! Thank you so much for being so brave.

  26. Peg says:

    You got this!!

  27. Karen says:

    Good luck tonight! I am sure you’re going to nail it!

  28. Michelle R says:

    Just be you, and you will be amazing. Everyone there is your friend and will be supporting and encouraging you.

  29. yvette says:

    I know you will do great Libby and Jennifer will be right there beside you… Big hugs and Angel kisses

  30. Linda says:

    We will be at the 5k run/walk next weekend! Good luck tonight Libby! We live you all ♡♡♡♡♡♡

  31. Suzanne says:

    Good luck! Can’t wait to hear how it goes!!!

  32. Kim Lancaster says:

    Libby, best wishes tonight, you will and already have had a huge impact on all of us, you and Jennifer already have just us all for the better, things in my life I would worry about , are not important any more, important look at everything differently now, I cherish all the little moments so much more, I should have known this because I work in pediatrics,and I have seen alot of heartbreak, but you Libby and your words are so honest and well I simply love you , you share the reality ,and you have change us all for the better, you will be just Awesome tonight, I wish I could be there but I have to work, hugs to you always

  33. Megan says:

    I have no doubt that you will do a great job tonight and make an impact. You are so brave! We will be running alongside you next weekend. Sending our love today and every day.

  34. Judy Lomas says:

    There’s no doubt in my mind that your speeches/talks will be moving and people will definitely be impacted by it! You have a way with words!!

  35. Jenn says:

    Good luck and lots of love. Make Jennifer and all of us proud! We are all so proud of you already! Xoxo

  36. Lyndee says:

    Good Luck! I’m positive you’re going to make a huge impact. You and Jennifer already have. I hope you can share it on here after? I’d love to hear the speech. XO

  37. Heather says:

    Good luck. Spread yours and Jennifer’s love and joy. Let the room feel her glitter spread through their veins!!!

  38. Melissa says:

    Sending you lots of LUCK!!!!! You will do amazing <3

  39. Nichole says:

    You make a difference everyday Libby, you got this! <3

  40. Bonnie says:

    I know you and Jennifer will move hearts and in the process, move mountains. Lifting you all in prayer

  41. Laura B says:

    Best wishes tonight Libby!

  42. Tamra Pulido says:

    Good luck! You will rock this!!

  43. Tracy Cowan-Popp says:

    You got this!!!

  44. Sandra says:

    Good luck Libby!!! 🙂

    Love and Light

  45. Kristen Tredrea says:

    Hope it goes (or went). Wish I could hear you. I know you’ll be amazing.

  46. Kristen Tredrea says:

    Sorry there was supposed to be a ‘well’ in that sentence.

  47. Lindsey says:

    Good luck tonight, Libby. I so wish I was able to go. I know you will do an amazing job. I hope you feel Jennifer tonight and I know you will and already have made such a huge impact. Lots of love and strength your way. Xoxo

  48. Ashley says:

    Thinking of you! Sending luck, light and love.

  49. Val says:

    I’m sure you did a wonderful job Libby. So happy that your voice is being heard and there is power in that.

  50. Erika M says:

    You’ll rock it…and if not, there’s alcohol on site. 😉 I raise my glass to you tonight: the champion of all things good.

  51. Megan says:

    I hope it went great!

  52. Rachel bissell says:

    Good luck! You will be great!

  53. Heidi says:

    I received this email today and wanted to share it with you:

    For my bereaved friends as they approach Mother’s Day…

    “The Grieving Garden”

    The one true thing I would share is not an easy thing. It’s not warm comfort. But for me, coming to realize this truth is, nonetheless, a comfort. A comfort that’s hard and heavy, but bright and solid. It is this: the breathtaking, staggering, intensity of the pain, the shattering, the unbelievable quality of knowing that my child is gone, it doesn’t go away. In some ways it doesn’t even diminish. For me, as I write this, it’s been nine-and-a-half years. Nine-and-a-half years since I saw Nick, heard his voice, had his living presence in my life. That searing sense of the full realization of his death I call the abyss. I can feel it, I know that it’s always in me.

    The difference, and it’s a huge difference, that time and grieving have given me is that I live the great bulk of my life at a safe distance from the edge of that abyss. Those early months, and even years, I often felt that I was right on the edge of it. Living so near to that abyss left very little room in my life or my heart for anything else. And I truly didn’t think that I would survive if I fell in. Now, while it’s always in my peripheral vision, my field of awareness, I’m usually not at the edge. But I can go there. Sometimes I’m swept there unexpectedly. Other times, on anniversaries or simply on a quiet Friday afternoon, I can choose to go there and feel that primal grief, that bottomless sorrow. But here’s why it’s a comfort, why I wouldn’t change this, why I wouldn’t remove that abyss from my soul, even if I could: I know, as deeply as I’ll ever know anything, that I will never forget Nick. I know that his importance in my life will never diminish, that his life and his death will never be just something that happened in the past. It is a bargain I gladly make. For me, to hold his life forever alive in me means that I must also hold his death forever alive in me. I hold it all: the gift of him, the miracle of his life and his being, and the abyss. And together, the have formed something more, something ineffable greater awareness of the beauty of life. I have had to grow my heart to be able to hold it all, to be able not only to go on living, but to go on living well. It is hard, but I owe it to Nick, so I do it.

  54. Oksana says:

    Me and my girl Victoria are going to join you guys in the run next week. We are super excited to help Jennifer to make a difference!

  55. Ashley says:

    So proud of you for speaking tonight, especially on such a difficult weekend. Not that any of the week days or weekends aren’t, but still, that took a lot of courage and I wish I could have been there.

    My daughter, sister, mom, step-dad and I will all be at the 5k next weekend, traveling from Arroyo Grande and Chico. Rilynne, (my 3 and a half year old), constantly asks to watch “JLK and the brothers,” (aka: the glitter shoot), whenever she sees the computer up, and she randomly brings Jennifer up in the strangest and most beautiful moments.

    I’m always nervous about you and/or your family being bombarded with too many people at these events, even though I know it all comes from a loving place, I’m sure it can just be too much at one time, which is why I didn’t introduce myself or give you the hug I so desperately wanted to give you at Jennifer’s Celebration of Life. I feel like if the time is right this time around, then I will, and if not, I’m happy enough to be there to silently support you guys.

    So just in case we still don’t cross path’s this time around, if you see a little girl in sparkly silver ugg boots (likely in a red stroller), and a overly-winded mom pushing behind her (physical activity has never been my strong suit!), that’s us and we’re sending you all the love we possibly can. And those boots she’ll be wearing are the ones my mom and I stopped off and purchased at a store outlet in Gilroy, on our ride home from Jennifer’s Celebration of Life, which have been lovingly named her “JLK’s.” (And she lets everyone know). <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

    (

  56. I had quite a few friends at MNO at paradox last night, and I heard you did incredible! I’m in awe of you having the strength to do that! You go momma!

  57. Lorrin says:

    Saw you running…I know nothing will ever be worth the price your family has paid, but I wanted to say you’ve really inspired me. I’m doing the 5k. Training for it has given me so much, I don’t think I can put it into words. Thank you for fighting, and thank you for the opportunity to join your fight.

  58. Erica Thompson says:

    Think of you and your beloved Jennifer all the time. You will do an amazing job sharing. Such strength you have to do so — and will bless so many (as your messages have blessed me and my family!!) Forgot to tell you that 700 of us prayed for your loss at William Jessup prior to my speech when I spoke there. http://vimeo.com/87888895 You are always in my thoughts and prayers. Sending you even more for your speaking engagement!

  59. Greta says:

    One of your many gifts Libby: you command the attention of total strangers like me , we listen and we then end up wanting to stay by your side on this Journey, wherever it takes us. You will be amazing for all those mommies to see. Be proud of you strength because we are proud of you always. May JLK’ s spirit be with you, always.

  60. Shannon Whitaker says:

    Dear Libby,

    I saw you speak at Mama’s Night Out last night and you were incredible. Your words were, no, ARE so powerful. I woke up many times last night, and all day today you and your family are on my mind and in my heart. Snippets of things you said keep playing over in my mind. I think that is a sign of a truly gifted speaker.

    I am so glad that you have chosen to do something positive with an unimaginable experience. I know that I am forever changed in my awareness about Pediatric Cancer.

    This was my third year at this event, and although every year has been powerful, this year was different. You and your caring, candid, intelligent talk really left me thinking and wanting to get involved…… so, mission accomplished!

    Also, I hope you smile knowing that glitter has been catching the sun in my house all morning! Please keep sharing your story.

    I wish you and your husband and all of your beautiful children peace and happiness!

    With sincere gratitude,
    Shannon Whitaker

  61. Peg says:

    Just thinking of you. Hoping you find some bright spots in this
    weekend. You are a fabulous mother.

  62. Nancy Ingham says:

    Best Wishes Libby! I hope it all goes well for you.

  63. Lori B says:

    Your talk at MNO was the best part of the evening, hands down. As promised, we were out there praying for you to make it through, but you did so much more than that. You enlightened, taught, encouraged, challenged and inspired every person there. You are THE Warrior Mom.

  64. Stacy says:

    Sounds like you did awesome…………….strong, intelligent and loving Mama! May there be many more, Libby. 🙂

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