Sarah (Bowling) Fuhrman
When Sarah (Bowling) Fuhrman entered Kindergarten at Loogootee Elementary School, she was joined by an extraordinary group of classmates. Sarah, who was born with cystic fibrosis, quickly bonded with her classmates and was accepted and loved. On May 24, 2005, Sarah passed away at the age of 22. The lessons learned from knowing Sarah are remembered and cherished by her friends and family.
The life lessons learned by the Loogootee High School Class of 2001 were in part impacted by having Sarah amongst them. One of the results of the relationships that were forged is the “Sarah Bowling Fuhrman Memorial Fund for Youth” endowment at the Martin County Community Foundation, founded by five of her friends to provide classroom grants to their alma mater as well as to establish a permanent legacy to Sarah. These friends were Sarah’s classmates and closest friends: Andrea (Sorrells) Huff, Jessica (Davis) Sheetz, Ashly (Erler) Fisher, Sarah (Graber) Knepp, and Stacy (Mathias) Sickbert. One day they sat down to share memories of what it was like knowing Sarah from an early age, growing up with her, and how knowing her impacted them.
Ashly recalled an early memory of Sarah. “In third grade, I asked Sarah what was ‘wrong’ with her and she looked at me and said ‘I have a disease call cystic fibrosis, but if you can’t say that, then say ‘sixty-five roses.’ To me, explaining a disease that is so serious can be a hard thing to do, but Sarah found a way to make it sound ‘ok,’ like she did so many times in her life.”
Sarah defined herself and her life in a remarkable way by living an active and vibrant life. She was involved in Dance, Lionettes, Student Council, and Twin Rivers medical careers. She continued on to graduate from high school, go to college, become a pharmacy technician, attend Vincennes University’s nursing program, plan a wedding and get married. Sarah was a wife, daughter, granddaughter, sister, aunt, niece, cousin, and friend.
She was a perfect example of making the most of life. “You could always count on her for a laugh. Her sweet, charming, loving personality earned her the title of ‘Miss Personality’ from her senior class,” said Sarah Knepp. Andrea added, “She was fun-loving, and I think she inspired many of us around her to achieve and look at life as a most precious thing, and that is a lesson many people never have the opportunity to learn.” This was especially true for those who had the opportunity to really know her. Stacy expressed this when she said, “She taught us to love life, and we treasure that lesson.”
God never gives us anything we cannot handle. Sarah proved that to her friends by living her life with cystic fibrosis with more grace, style, spunk, and dignity than ever expected. “She did such a wonderful job of this that it was difficult for us to comprehend how sick she really was,” expressed her friends. “We never fully understood that Sarah would pass away. We thought she would live forever, and in our hearts and through this endowment, she does.” Jessica noted that “Sarah was the bravest person I’ve ever met. Nothing, and no amount of money, will bring Sarah back to us. But by establishing this endowment we know she will be remembered, and her story will become a legacy to her, Sarah, our friend.”
Many times when someone is terminally ill, the disease or sickness defines who they are. In most stories, there is a defining point for the individual and those who love them, when destiny becomes reality. So many times the things that we wish to do and the goals we hope to achieve are just a dream to those whose lives must end so hastily. In the end, most people find that the feelings of loss are consoled in knowing that all along, the day would come for a person, like Sarah, to leave.
But this story has a twist to it. Sarah’s friends came to know her before they knew cystic fibrosis. They came to know, in full, Sarah’s hopes, dreams, goals, happiness, sadness, laughter, love, passion, joy, tears, and interests. They saw first-hand what made her heart glow and the intensity which she brought to every day. As they grew, they saw her hopes, dreams, goals, and interests become a reality. Growing is a learning experience filled with the good and the bad of every situation. As a team, the friends walked through every open door that life handed them with the determination of a child. Although the inevitable was stated many times, it wasn’t a reality. Sarah defined cystic fibrosis; the disease did not become her, yet she became the disease. She did what she said she was going to do with a smile on her face and a passion so big.
Sometimes in life, the body is weaker than the soul. This is true in many different ways. Whether someone has a heart full of intentions that never get met, or someone never getting the courage to do something they have always wanted to do. Sarah was a different story. She had, and demonstrated, the courage to take the world by the hand. Sarah beat the disease on her own terms.
How this story ends isn’t really an ending at all, yet an open door. Just as the group of friends carried each other through good and bad for all those years, the five still carry Sarah with them. This touching story began as a journey of six girls coming together and forming a bond that would last a lifetime and continues on as just that. The girls say “Thank you Sarah, for allowing us to be a part of your life.”