Cole…I Love You to the Moon and Back
Aaron Ruotsala:
Founder of C.O.L.E’s Foundation for families battling pediatric cancer
In September 2008, Aaron, and his wife, Moireen, buried their three-year-old son, Cole, after an eight- week battle with cancer. During that time, a groundswell of support emerged both on and offline. Cole’s CaringBridge Web site received over 600,000 hits, prayer teams were organized, and they received thousands of messages.
“With over a million people supporting our family through Cole’s battle with cancer, I finally realized what the true body of Christ consists of… it is much larger than four walls of our physical church,” says Ruotsala, who has detailed his family’s story in the book, Cole…I Love You to the Moon and Back. “So many times people don’t know what to do to help but the opportunities are endless.”
This book will move you, make you hug your child(ren) a little tighter. Ruotsala does an excellent job retelling his family's journey through finding out his child had cancer, to knowing his child was not going to be staying on this earth. As heartbreaking as so many moments are on this journey, what impresses me is the faith the Ruotsala's maintained throughout this ordeal. They were honest in their struggles, in their pain, but still, it is evident that their belief in a living God is strong.
This moment, this tragedy, could happen to any one of us at any given time. And this book is just one way we can all learn how to better walk alonside of one another in the moments tragedies strike.
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