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CROSSING THE RIVER

A CELEBRATION OF OUR DEFIER BROTHERS AND SISTERS WHO HAVE JOINED THE ANCESTORS

Many of our brave defiers have lost their lives to the struggle with their disease. In this section we celebrate the contributions they have made to the lives of their families and loved ones. We also honor them as members of the sickle cell community and hope that we can learn from them in their passing.

Qwavis Joquise Gerrel Payne Farrington
(also known as Qwa Qwa)
Born on September 20, 1995 to Bob Farrington and Elaine Payne.

On January 1, 1998, the sickle cell community lost a little boy by the name of Qwavis Joquise Gerrel Payne Farrington.
Qwavis lived in the Bronx, New York with his family, and was a little over two years old at the time of his death. He was a patient at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, and was treated at their renowned pediatric Sickle Cell Clinic. The morning he died, he had been treated at the emergency room at this same hospital, and although he had been suffering from a very high fever, he was not admitted. The family currently has a wrongful death suit pending against the hospital.
defiers.com will provide updates on this case as circumstances permit.

Words from Elaine:
Qwavis was a very special little boy from the day I found out that I was pregnant with him. It was a hard and long pregnancy due to the fact that I had high blood pressure, and a few times they wanted to take him, but the good Lord wouldn't let them. So the day came and so did Qwavis. He was a joy to all our lives. He has four loving sisters - Atiyia, Shanea, Vinnette, and Aysia, and his brother, Julius.
Qwavis touched so many lives. Qwavis also had sickle cell but he didn't have a lot of trouble with it. He loved to play, he loved the park, he always wanted to ride in cars (he didn't mind whose car). Qwavis was a true boy all and all. Qwavis may not have called your name right, or he called you in his own way - the way he knew you... and he loved babies. Qwavis' favorite word was NO.
My son was everything to me. He was so special and I loved him with all my heart, and yes, I love my daughters as well, but it was something about having a son, and I always wanted a boy... His father, Bob called him Pop Pop. He loved being with his son. They enjoyed each other, taking boat rides on the ferry, going to the park, playing basketball, running & jumping on the bridge, climbing the monkey bars, playing with his cars and just doing things together.

Words from Bob:
It's hard dealing with my feelings and emotions; the pain inside is real. As most fathers, I had hopes and dreams for our son. From time to time, I find myself asking this question, "What could I have done to prevent it?" A few days after the loss of our son, I unconsciously blamed myself. I no longer do that... because God will grant me the serenity to accept the things I can't change.

A poem for Qwavis
by Kawana Satterfield (Qwavis' cousin)
written in January, 1998

Guardian Angel

Do you know your guardian angel
Mine is very real to me
It's not just me and Jesus
My guardian angel makes us three

From the very day that I was born
When my Mother smiled at me
God assigned to me an angel
and he's with me constantly

You also have an angel
whom you cannot hear or see
But he guides and protects you
As my angel does for me

Qwavis Payne Farrington
"R.I.P."
I will always love you

Colin A. Ross I, defier

Words from Denise Weaver Ross, August 12, 2001:
My husband Colin died this June from complications from sickle cell disease. Today would have been his 40th birthday. He was a D.J., a dancer, an inventor, a computer scientist, a great cook and baker, and a good husband and father. He definitely "defied" sickle cell all his life. Even dragging his oxygen tank to the roof to fix our heater to install a new motor last winter. There were a hundred and one things he did and thousands he never had time to do. He said he wanted to live a thousand years so that he could complete all his plans.

A friend of ours said it best: "He was and is to me one of the most special people I have ever known; someone who possessed a spirit that so few people do; someone who was never afraid to say what he felt and, especially, someone with a unique, wonderful sense of humor. For someone to have such qualities while living with such a life threatening disease is extraordinary. I will truly miss him and will feel an emptiness knowing that he is no longer with us."
Signed:
Denise Weaver Ross
Alexander Ross, age 9
Nicholas Ross, age 7

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