Nineteen-year-old Jasmine Yu passed away July 25th , 2011 after a long struggle with a heart condition.   Yu graduated from Juan Diego Catholic High School in 2010, and still has many friends among the school community.

        Although her funeral and burial took place a few days after her death, St. John the Baptist Catholic Church hosted a memorial service for her on September 2nd, according to her family's Filipino tradition of a Mass to end a 40-day period of mourning. The intention of the service was to help the family and friends of Yu work through their grief, but it was also a remembrance of the miracle that was Yu's life, according to presider Deacon Dale Dillon.

        On the altar sat a picture of Yu, smiling, as well as a vase filled with blue and white flowers. Yu's younger brother, Jay, and one of her friends proclaimed the Scripture readings.

       Dillon's homily reminded those gathered to celebrate a young girl who had fought a medical battle her whole life. “Jasmine was a miracle and a fighter from the beginning,” Dillon said. “She was born with a serious heart problem and the doctors told her mom and dad that she only had a 10% chance of surviving her first few days.”

      Noticing the tears from some in the congregation, even Dillon had to pause momentarily to collect himself.  He went on to talk about Yu’s resilience and how she never complained, even though she had to take 21 pills each day of her life to keep her body from rejecting her transplanted heart. But instead of complaining, he said, she chose to treat every day like it was a gift.

     “It was at Juan Diego that she received another miracle the day that the new heart of hers stopped and that Caroline Schnurr and the other faculty and students revived her,” Dillon continued, referring to a day during Yu's senior year of high school when she fainted in the hallway and had to be revived using the school's defibrillator. “Jasmine went on to graduate with her class because of the heroic efforts of her school community.”

         Dillon concluded the service with a prayer Yu had "made her own" -- a prayer which he said described her strong faith well. “If God brings it to you, He will bring you through it. Happy moments, praise God. Difficult moments, seek God. Quiet moments, worship God. Painful moments, trust God. Every moment, thank God.”