Death
Mattie Stepanek died at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, June 22, 2004, three weeks before his 14th birthday. His funeral was held on June 28, 2004, at Saint Catherine Laboure Roman Catholic Church in Wheaton, Maryland. Nearly 1,350 people attended, including Oprah Winfrey and country singer Billy Gilman. A eulogy was delivered by former President Jimmy Carter, who said
We have known kings and queens, and we've known presidents and prime ministers, but the most extraordinary person whom I have ever known in my life is Mattie Stepanek. His life philosophy was 'Remember to play after every storm!' and his motto was: 'Think Gently, Speak Gently, Live Gently'. He wanted to be remembered as "a poet, a peacemaker, and a philosopher who played".
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Famous quotes containing the word death:
“I want Death to find me planting my cabbages, neither worrying about it nor the unfinished gardening.”
—Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592)
“Our love is old, our lives are old,
And death shall come amain:
Should it come today, what man may say
We shall not live again?”
—Langdon Smith (1858–1908)
“Sad. Nothing more than sad. Let’s not call it a tragedy; a broken heart is never a tragedy. Only untimely death is a tragedy.”
—Angela Carter (1940–1992)