This post was created in 2015 but never posted.  Here it is as we approach her homecoming day.

Beth blessed us by putting Debbie's video on on Prayer that was made at East Heights a few years ago.  She has an amazing faith...but she also has an amazing God.  This continues to bless me. Click on Deb's picture to watch the video or go http://vimeo.com/44385408

Coming into today, I thought that it would be an easy day, I am home from traveling, back to the grind at work, back to the schedule.  The day started out fine, a brisk spring morning, then it seemed as if a cloud came across my path.  I do miss all the things we used to do together, the projects she would always have, her never sit down and rest attitude.  While I'm doing fine by myself, it's certainly not the same.  She was the greatest gift of my life and that gift blessed me with two more in my two girls, and the blessing has continued.  I see Deb in each of my girls and that brings a lot of joy.  As different as they are, each possesses so many of the extraordinary qualities of their mother. I thank my God and Father and best friend for Debbie.  I can't wait to see her again.  Life is full, life is good.

We had planned a trip to Nashville and then on to New York for Debbie's "Dream Trip" [bucket list checkoff] and our plans changed.  Debbie and I were looking forward to seeing the Broadway Musical "Once".  We had a family friend whose daughter worked in the production and since we were unable to attend, were sent this special video that took Debbie's breath away.  Thanks to Katy and the cast of "Once" for this very special moment that deeply touched Debbie and I.

Last year at this time Deb and I were ready to head off to Nashville for Adrianne's 35 birthday and then on to New York for 4 days of Art Immersion.  Then the test results came back and everything changed.  April 24, 2014 began Debbie's final leg of her journey Home.  This week has been very hard for Miranda and Adrianne too.  Our worlds were going to change. While I knew for some time that it was all going to come to this, I was still not really prepared for the things that would happen over the next several weeks.  
The rush of family and friends who came to show their love and support for Deb and I was so wonderful and was so important for Debbie to experience.  In looking back over this time now, I wish I would have had more time alone with her.  I know the girls wish they would have had more time as Deb started failing much sooner than we expected.  As the toxins built up in her body she quickly began to lose focus and the ability to finish sentences or complete her thoughts.  You could see the frustration in her eyes as she also found it hard to tell us what she was thinking and feeling.  
The hardest part of her last few weeks was seeing her struggle physically, and while I may wish for more time, during that period I wished that God would take her sooner rather than later.  The only thing that kept me going was knowing that in her head, she was right there with Jesus and He was holding her close through it all,  and I know she felt that, which made it all OK.
The next few weeks will be hard once again for my girls and I as our memories of those last weeks all come flooding back.  But through it all, I know that my God will be holding us close and reminding us of who He is and whose we are.  Thank you God of the universe, my Father and sustainer.  Thank you for helping in my unbelief.

Miranda has found Debbie's journals that she wrote to keep her centered during her journey through cancer.  The site is currently at http://mymomsjourney.weebly.com.  You can read some of the thoughts and history of Debbie's 4 year walk with God through cancer.  

Beth re-published a short video of Debbie from a few years ago on the subject of "Prayer".  She has an amazing faith in God...but she also has an amazing God.  This continues to bless me.  

There are no words to adequately express our joy and sense of blessing from all the many friends and family who came to celebrate with us the life and faith of Debbie on Saturday.  There are so many people who brought food and sent cards and emails, texts and facebook posts remembering us and Deb.  Thanks seems so trivial, but to everyone who added to our tears, tummies and tributes,  we are so blessed.  

Debbie was born in the flood of July, 1951 in Lincoln, Kansas and was taken by boat across the river to the hospital.  She lived in Lincoln until her father Donald accepted a position to manage the Gambles Hardware store in Harper, KS.  There she attended Elementary school.  When her father accepted the position of purchasing agent for Harper Trucks, a manufacturer of mobile hand trucks and dolleys, which relocated to Wichita, Debbie attended Truesdale Junior High in the 8th grade.  Her musical interest brought her to the Truesdale concert band where she played in the percussion section,  one of only two girls.  That is where she met Bart.  They also went to the same church and high school.  Debbie was confirmed in the Lutheran Church where part of the confirmation ritual was to choose a “confirmation verse” that was to be yours to live into.  Debbie chose Isaiah 41:10. That verse served her well into the final days here on earth.  She walked 25 miles with her church youth group in the first “Hike for the Hungry”, a national hunger awareness project that raised money to help fight world hunger in the late 60’s and  spent a short time in the Kansas “Up with People” music group.

 In the summer before her senior year she tried out for Drum Major of the South High School Fighting Colonels Marching Band.  She didn’t make it, some tall skinny 130 pound junior got the position instead [oh that skinny guy was Bart Wilson].  Somehow, one might think, if you can’t be the drum major, at least you might think about dating the drum major, who is also in your church youth group, and was also kind of a funny guy.  Well, regardless of her reason, they found each other and started dating in 1968.  

Debbie graduated from South in 1969 and went away to college, all the way to Hutchinson Community College.  Being a college girl now and Bart just a senior in high school they decided it was time to date other people, not a plan Bart was happy with.   Thankfully, and to the hurt feelings of Bart’s homecoming date, Debbie changed her mind and decided that maybe it was OK to stay with this guy she kinda developed a fondness for.  That’s right, Bart dumped a sweet girl at the last minute to take the love of his life, this college freshman to the South High homecoming dance.  He was on top of the world and she was, as always, the most beautiful girl in the world.  

Well, their relationship continued to develop through college, Debbie coming back to Wichita and getting her degree in English Education from WSU.   They were married  August 13, 1972 and moved to Kansas State University where Bart continued to pursue his college degree in Architecture.  While at K-State, Debbie taught High School English at Wamego High School.  She spent many weekends and evenings on speech and debate tournaments and directing school plays, while Bart spent his time in Manhattan.  During this period Debbie and Bart were youth sponsors for their small Wamego Lutheran church.

The next part of their lives was complicated but ended up with Bart Managing a new IGA Grocery store in Clay Center, Kansas and Debbie leaving teaching to work at the Clay Center Library as children’s Librarian.  Adrianne came into our lives in 1979 and was born a 35 minute drive from Clay Center in Manhattan, KS.  In 1981 Miranda joined us  and was born in Clay Center.  Debbie had always had an interest in all things creative and that pulled her back into college where she took classes towards an art degree at K-State.  A few difficult years and a business failure brought the Wilson’s back home to Wichita where Debbie completed her degree in Art at WSU.  She also went to work at the City Library downtown in talking books, a service for the visually impaired.***  She spent the remainder of her working career at the library eventually moving back into the children’s department where she developed children’s programming.  Debbie’s passion for art brought her into the art community through Gallery XII, an artist coop, and then her own studio in Artist’s at Old Town where she painted until she could no longer find the energy going through Cancer treatment. 

Debbie also had a passion for the under-privileged and spent several years volunteering at Someplace Else, an HIV home sponsored by the New Jerusalem Mission here in Wichita.  

She worked full time, raised two beautiful daughters, found time for her art and still found a way to serve others in need.  

She spent a great deal of time encouraging our girls to discover their passions and got them involved in AYSO soccer, gymnastics, tried piano lessons but succeeded in helping them find something they enjoyed in music.  Adrianne played the clarinet and Miranda the trumpet in middle school and sadly the high school band uniforms were not the fashion statement either wanted to make so they turned to vocal music, where they also excelled.   Debbie was an incredible mom, dad was the pushover and Debbie often played the heavy when it came to disciplining the girls.  She did so with patience and love.

Money was always tight in the family but Debbie was a shopper, looking everywhere to find just the right thing at the best price.  She sewed a lot of the girls clothes when they were younger and loved garage sales, where she found lots of treasures.  They bought their first house just outside the college hill area and Deb loved renovating and fixing it up.  She had that creative touch and everything she did was wonderful.  She started a “Craft boutique and art show” at Bethany Lutheran church when the girls were young and it continues yearly to this day.   She created a couple of special banners for weddings and a large painting for Valentines day at College Hill UMC.  She also painted a large mural in the youth Center in honor of one of their devoted youth sponsors who spent years inspiring youth.   Debbie went on a couple of youth mission trips as a sponsor and always found a way to do little things behind the scenes to help.  

She organized two weddings in two years and devoted the past 5 years to her grandsons, who she adored.  Every shopping trip would always find boys toys or clothes as part of her purchases.  Trips to be with them were proceeded with the gathering of supplies and projects to do with her boys.  Even through all of her cancer treatments, the anticipation of time with her girls and grandsons kept her going.  

In her final years, she never let go of the foundation of her life, based in her understanding of the God of the universe who loves us and comes to be with us in a personal relationship that leads us on an amazing journey into an eternity with Him.

*** Life Happens but sometimes there are choices.

During Debbie’s time in talking books, there was a young high school student who volunteered for the summer at the library.  She was assigned to Deb’s department.  Debbie always found ways to make everyone around her feel welcome and comfortable, but there was something special about the bright eyed girl full of energy, smart and always full of smiles.  For some reason, they just hit it off and their relationship grew into one of those rare “mother/daughter” friendships.   We call her our chosen, though more aptly put, God chose us to be part of her life and she has blessed us ever since.  We are blessed to be called mom and dad, and grandma and grandpa by her children.  Kim-Luong Dao Nguyen is a part of our family and our 4 additional grandchildren, Vicki, Tohni, Michelle and Phillip bring us great joy.   Luong is a part of Debbie’s Story. 

written with love by her other half, Bart

Debbie, my bride of almost 42 years, walked home hand in hand with our God last night around 9 pm.  We were blessed to be there, Adrianne, Miranda, her sister Vicki and her husband Bill.  While we are saddened that we will not have her next to us, or at the other end of a wonderful phone conversation,  or the recipient of her thoughtfulness and concern for those she loved, we celebrate with great joy the victory of a life that doesn't end here but continues forever in the perfect relationship with a passionate, loving God through Jesus Christ. 
Yesterday as Chaplain Brenda was with us, she picked up Sarah Young's 'Jesus Calling' and read the message/passage for May 19th.  Here is an excerpt [written in the voice of Jesus to us, pulled from Holy Scripture]:
"I want you to know how safe and secure you are in My Presence.  That is a fact, totally independent of your feelings.  You are on your way to Heaven; nothing can prevent you from reaching that destination.  There you will see Me face to Face, and your Joy will be off the charts by any earthly standards. Even now, you are never separated from Me, though you must see Me through the eyes of faith.  I will walk with you until the end of time, and onward into eternity." From 1 Corinthians 13:12; Pslam 29:11
May Debbie's Jesus also bring you Joy through your tears knowing that through Him, we will one day see her again.  As Sawyer, our oldest grandson said, "when we get to heaven and we see Bebe again, she will have things planned out for us to do together."  He knows his grandma and he knows our God.  'nough said.

Bart 

As plans are made for Debbie's memorial service, we will place that information here.  Thank you to all of our friends for so much.

Obituary:
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/kansas/obituary.aspx?n=debra-anne-wilson-debbie&pid=171119759
http://www.heritageofandover.com/home/index.cfm/obituaries/view/id/2526449

Memorial Service:
Saturday, May 31, 2014 - 1:00 PM
East Heights United Methodist Church
4407 East Douglas, Wichita, Kansas

Memorials can be made to:

Victory in the Valley, 3755 E. Douglas Ave, Wichita, KS 67218
Caring Ministries of East Heights UMC [address above]
Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice 313 S. Market Street, Wichita, KS 67202