Woman Takes 'Snow Angel' Challenge To Honor Friend Lost Too Soon

MATTITUCK, NY — Danielle Meraz, a beloved North Fork resident who lost her battle with cancer in December, loved snow, looking forward joyfully to the first snowflakes of the season.

So much so that her friend Kristin Tirelli decided to keep Meraz's memory alive on Tuesday by taking the "snow angel bathing suit challenge," to raise money for a little girl in the community with an inoperable brain tumor.

Tirelli said she is taking donations for Helping Hands 4 Morgan. The minimum pledge is $20, she said.

"I’ll do the bathing suit snow angel challenge in honor of Danielle Meraz and her love of snow," she said. Tirelli did the challenge at 2:15 p.m., "the approximate time of Danielle’s transition. Let’s raise some money for this little girl and the challenges she faces," she wrote.

After the challenge, which Tirelli faced with courage and laughter as she raced out into the frosty snow in a bathing suit, she said, "It wasn’t nearly as bad as thought it would be."

During the hours leading up to the snow angel challenge, she said, "I was thinking, 'Good Lord, what have I done?'" But then, she said, she thought about everything Meraz had gone through, all her family is enduring now, after her loss — and all Morgan's family is facing. "So to get a little cold for a few minutes is no big deal." She added, "It’s all about perspective, love and being grateful. It makes you put your own troubles into perspective."

So far, the snow angel challenge has raised $810 and counting, she said, with donations still pouring in.

Of the experience, she said, "When God gives you snow, go play in it! God bless you, Morgan and West family. Miss you, Danielle."

Checks made payable to Helping Hands for Morgan can be mailed to Kristin Tirelli at P.O. Box 237, Mattituck, NY 11952.

Morgan West is a little girl from Cutchogue who has bravely battled an inoperable brain stem tumorfor more than six years.

Despite slim odds, Morgan's survival been an inspiration to many and her bright smile a symbol of hope. Recently, though, circumstances grew darker.

"On a routine visit for scans in August, we were given the devastating news that Morgan's tumor was active and growing," her mother Nikki West said. "We had not noticed any changes in Morgan that would have led us to believe that anything had changed. We were in complete shock and disbelief. She had been stable for so long."

When she was two, Morgan was diagnosed with Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma, also known as DIPG. It is a highly aggressive and inoperable tumor that has no cure and is ultimately terminal. The average life expectancy for those who have DIPG is about a year after diagnosis.

A patient at St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, Morgan has been embraced by the North Fork community, members of which check in on her progress with messages on the Helping Hands 4 Morgan Facebook page and website.

By taking the snow angel challenge, Tirelli is honoring her dear friend's wish to help Morgan: In lieu of flowers at Meraz's funeral, her family asked that In lieu of flowers, her family asked that donations be sent to Helping Hands for Morgan, a forever legacy from a woman who spent her life caring for others, even in the midst of her own challenges.

Meraz touched hearts near and far during her two year battle with cancer: Since she was diagnosed in late 2015 with cancer of the brain, lungs, and spleen, the community opened their hearts, organizing fundraisers and supporting her throughout her journey with messages of love and an unending outpouring of support.

A team of angels organized a fundraiser in Greenport attended by hundreds, a Yogurt Bowl was organized by Kait's Angels, and a "Play for the Cure" event was organized by the Greenport/Southold varsity and junior varsity girls basketball team. Friends were there to share her joy at a concert when Harrison-Meraz even got to meet Donny Osmond and they teamed up to help her see a bucket list come true when she and Tirelli attended a Darius Rucker concert in October.

Harrison-Meraz faced her challenges, including arduous chemotherapy and radiation, with her trademark positivity and loving heart. "Be grateful, always," she reminded friends daily, always thankful for her blessings, even in the face of trials.

And her friends have vowed to keep those words echoing forever, in their hearts.

Photo courtesy Kristin Tirelli.