Obituary of Emma Marie Koertzen

No Public Visitation is planned Emma Marie Koertzen was born on August 11, 2001. She passed away peacefully at home on October 9th following a long battle with bone cancer. She is survived by her parents, Henry and Lauren; her brother, Jeremy; her grandparents, Dean and Nellie Stewart; her Ouma, Suzanne Koertzen; as well as many aunts, uncles and cousins. Emma was a joyful, happy child who loved to move. She took her first steps at ten months and by the time she was two could easily run a mile to the local nature park. She and her brother Jeremy used to chase each other repeatedly back and forth down the length of the hall, giggling all the way. Emma could not get enough of jumping castles, swings, roller coasters and pretty much anything else that goes fast. She gave her mother many gray hairs because from a very young age she could and would climb anything. Even cancer could not stop Emma from moving. She once climbed to the top of a huge play structure at McDonalds dragging her leg, in a full length brace, behind her. Emma was a big fan of the Wiggles and Barney. She loved music. When she was a baby standing on her dad’s knees, she’d sway to the beat when a band played in church. Even when she was weak and confined to her wheelchair, she’d smile and tilt her head back and forth rhythmically when performers played music for her in the hospital. Emma loved to look at and touch things. Nobody was a bigger fan of the artwork on the hospital walls than Emma. She loved photos, books, and flash cards with pictures on them. She enjoyed swimming and especially liked going down water slides and splashing in fountains. Emma faced many developmental and health challenges in her short life but did not let this stop her from laughing and loving. She may not have been able to talk, but she spoke volumes to our hearts with her eyes, her touch and her wonderful smile. She was our joy, our sunshine and forever our beautiful little girl. We cherished her and feel her loss deeply. Memmorial donations may be made to: The Liddy Shriver Initiative (www.sarcomahelp.org) 17 Bethea Drive Ossining New York 10562-1620 Camp Agape Northwest (Camp-agape.org) P.O. Box 65504 University Place, WA 98464 Please leave memories of Emma and messages for the family by clicking on "View Guestbook" below.