Meet Kelson
For months before our precious son made his entrance to this world, we poured over names that might suit the little life we were anticipating.
Finally settling upon a non-traditional name – Kelson – a combination of his great-grandfather, Nelson, and his cousin, Kelly, we had no way of knowing just how perfectly fitting this name would be for the little boy who was about to change our lives forever.
We knew that according to Merriam-Webster, a keelson was “a longitudinal structure running above and fastened to the keel of a ship in order to stiffen and strengthen its framework”…in short, our son’s name would mean “added strength”. No way could we have known the strength one little boy could possess, or the strength he would impart to all whose lives he touched.
“…in short, our son’s name would mean ‘added strength’.”
Faced with insurmountable challenges from his first breath, Kelson Daniel Loveland embodied strength, resilience and determination from the word go:
As doctors scratched their heads and searched for solutions, his little body battled.
As he endured countless surgeries, treatments and therapies, he was strong.
As diagnoses piled up, and answers remained elusive, he refused to give in.
As his body twisted and weakened and began to fail him, still, with extraordinary strength and courage, he fought.
And he smiled. Kelson had a smile that could truly light the world.
The twinkle in his ever-famous side-eye is remembered fondly—and with a little chuckle—by all who were lucky enough to have experienced it. His personality filled the entire room, and without a single word ever crossing his perfect little lips, he spoke volumes, about so much, to so many. The beautiful sound of Kelson’s laughter echoes still.
On May 5, 2020, surrounded by those who loved him most, Kelson surrendered to all he’d been fighting every day of his life, took Jesus’ hand, and with no more pain, nothing more to be strong against, nothing more to be afraid of, he stepped into a perfect, healed, whole body for the rest of eternity.
