From Melanie Willis

Dear Dr. “K’s” Family,
I find myself being a cliché right now; I’m one of the many that didn’t give thanks while John was still here.For the past several months it’s been one of those things on my “to-do” list.
I now give thanks to you, thank you for letting him live in the willingness of the Lord. Thank you for being so selfless. John lived for God in an amazing way, as we have all heard so many times for the past few weeks. And I thank you for that, my children thank you for that.
I have three boys; Patrick age 12, Joel age 2, and Jeremy who is (thanks to Dr. K and many others) now almost 7 months old.Jeremy was born on July 25th of 2007. Within the first twenty four hours it was discovered that Jeremy had a fistula between is esophagus and trachea. Dr. K had just returned from treatments, and I never expected to see him. When he walked in the door, there was an overwhelming sense of calm, he brought my husband and I so much comfort. Jeremy was airlifted to Duke, where it was found that he also had a Coarctation of the aorta and two holes in his lower ventricles. (John had heard a murmur before he left Carteret General). It had been his call to send us to Duke instead of somewhere else. The doctor we received at Duke was definitely the best to perform the surgery that needed to happen. Jeremy had two surgeries within his first week of life, and spent the next few weeks at Duke recovering. Now, you would never know… he’s almost 7 months and weighs 22 pounds. He’s an amazing miracle. God was with us every step of the way, and straight from the beginning gave us comfort and peace by having John walk in to talk to us that first morning.
He has been there for us for the past 12 years, loving and taking care of our children, always bringing us that constant comfort. When I first moved here before my first was born, I met him at St. Andrews where I attended for several years. So, when it came time to take my first child to a doctor, the peace was already there just simply knowing he was truly a believer.
Thank you, that John was able to give himself to God’s willingness could only have happened with the support of his family. I know this is just one of so many letters you have received, but know that my heart is fully in this.
Melanie Willis