February 18, 2013

Dear Friends,

My beautiful, brilliant and very brave sister Debbie made her transition last night into the waiting arms of her ancestors and guardian angels.

She told Brian and me that she was tired and ready to go. She had accomplished her mission, even though she would have liked more time with her son Beau, her family, her devoted Julie, her gazillion friends and many beloved co-workers and community members.

Debbie wasn’t just my little sister. She was my friend, teacher, biggest supporter, and sometimes unmanageable client. (She was always stubborn which served her well these past two and half years when she defied the odds of cancer. I'll never forget the day one doctor told her in September 2010 to get her affairs in order because she was ready for hospice. She told him to F-off, that there was no way she was dying.)

If I had to choose just one word to describe her I would say that first and foremost Debbie was a seeker.

In her teens and twenties she was seeking excitement, parties, wild adventure and of course shopping.

In her thirties she began seeking to understand the mind, body, spirit connection in order to heal herself of addiction.

She was simultaneously committed to discovering her own spirituality while gaining a college degree in transpersonal psychology as she sought more and more understanding of herself, the divine, and the world. Debbie also earned two honorary doctorate degrees for her contributions to the field.

From her forties and beyond, she devoted herself to teaching and sharing her own powerful process of healing while always seeking new, deeper paths to wholeness.

Debbie innovated groundbreaking work around the human shadow and grew into her role as a teacher, sharing her insightful shadow work through her many books, lectures, workshops, coaching programs, TV and radio shows, and even a movie -- helping hundreds of thousands around the world transform their pain into “their best life.” Debbie helped so many people go beyond their limited perspective of themselves and reconnect to the love, joy, and peace of their true selves.

Her legacy and work will live on through the programs she developed and through her loving and devoted staff at The Ford Institute for Transformational Training.

Debbie was also a giver. Her generosity is legendary and one of her proudest accomplishments was assisting Beau with his Bar Mitzvah project to build a school in rural Uganda. Through her Collective Heart Foundation in partnership with the Just Like My Child Foundation, several important programs to help women and children are now thriving including a Girl Power project. You can support this by visiting www.TheCollectiveHeart.org

If you would like to post your memories and stories about Debbie, prayers for Debbie, or messages for the family, please visit RememberingDebbieFord.com

Love,
Arielle