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Longtime Lambertville residents Carly and Maddison Leary lost their mother, Rebecca Leary, from a pulmonary embolism that caused cardiac arrest on Nov. 19 after going through a difficult battle with cancer — hardly three years after the death of their father, William Leary, from cancer on May 2, 2018.
Carly, a 23-year-old nursing student, is now raising 13-year-old Maddison with her fiancé, Billy Osmun, according to a GoFundMe launched for the family’s expenses.
“If you had asked them five years ago if their lives would look like this today, they couldn’t imagine having to experience such loss in a short amount of time,” writes campaign creator Jessica Ramsin, also of Lambertville.
“They have had to watch their mom battle cancer, their dad battle cancer, lay their father to rest, learn to live without him, endured losing their home to the flood, and now lost their mother and need to learn how to live life without her,” Ramsin writes.
More than $25,400 had been raised on the campaign as of Wednesday, putting the family about a quarter of the way toward the $100,000 goal in just three days.
“To say we are heartbroken for them is an understatement,” writes Ramsin. “While their undeniable strength and resilience is envious, no one should have to experience this loss at such a young age.”
“These girls and this family do not deserve this sorrow. To help offset any future costs and to ensure that the girls are taken care of, we are starting this GoFundMe in hopes of aiding them through this difficult time.”
South Hunterdon Regional School District Superintendent Anthony Suozzo also shared his condolences in a post on the high school’s Facebook page:
“I am hoping our community can support the family during this most difficult time,” Suozzo said.
Click here to view/donate to ‘Help Carly and Maddie After Death of Parents’ on GoFundMe.
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