By Carmen M. Woodson-Wray, Gary Crusader

Skye Wilford spent a lot of time travelling back and forth to Indianapolis, IN with her father Rev. Richard Wilford taking her brother Angelo to Riley Children’s Hospital for treatments he had to take for his cancer. She was always by his side even on his last day. Skye wanted to say her last good-byes to her brother in a special way and when her teacher Ms. Ortiz at Eisenhower Elementary School in Crown Point assigned her class to write a letter to someone special in their families, she knew exactly who she would be writing to. Skye used her school assignment to write a letter from her heart to her brother Angelo.

The day Skye wrote the letter to Angelo she and her mother were on their way to Indianapolis to give it to him, but before they arrived he had passed away. She said it felt good to write the letter to him because she wanted him to feel better. Skye said her teacher read the letter herself and when she did she began to cry. She told Skye it was beautiful. Skye says she plans to have the letter framed and hung up in their home.

Skye says she someday plans to become an artist and writer when she grows up. She was recently named Artist of the 4th Grade for the month of November at school for two of her winning pictures. The first picture is entitled “A Jester Drawing” and the second is entitled “Love Comes in Different Shapes, Sizes and Colors.” It features her and Angelo in it. These two pictures are framed in the hallway of Eisenhower elementary school.