Julia Denise Evans

Julia Denise Evans 10-4-2000 to 2-28-2022 On February 28th, 2022 at 23:53, Julia's gifted heart finally went to sleep. On October 4th, 2000, the most beautiful baby girl was born. She was loved beyond measure by a very large and extended family, who had a million dreams for her. All of that came to a screeching halt on May 9th, 2001, when we found that she was in severe heart failure and would need a heart transplant. We hoped for the best and Julia received her gift on June 23rd when she was 8.5 months old. We can never thank Esmeralda and her family enough for this precious Gift of Life. We vowed to make the most of that second chance, and we did! Julia was a 2019 graduate of Novi High School. She was very athletically gifted, playing softball, volleyball, and bowling. She was artistic; she loved her honors choir class, was self-taught on the ukulele, painted, and performed beautifully as captain of the JV colorguard team. The world was her stage! She was well known to burst into song and dance at any given moment, especially Disney tunes and Broadway hits. Julia loved everything Marvel and would discuss the movies or comics at length with anyone who shared her passion. Her siblings meant so much to her and she was often playing Just Dance or Minecraft, much to the little ones' happiness. She was silly and sweet and had a heart of gold. Julia was an avid promoter of organ donation awareness and volunteered countless hours with Gift of Life Michigan and LifeLink of Florida. She represented Team Michigan at the 2014 and 2016 Transplant Games of America where she was a fierce competitor on the basketball, volleyball, and badminton courts, winning multiple medals. All Julia wanted was independence and she achieved that goal. She was a very hard worker who was offered a promotion before she was hospitalized. She was proud of her apartment and was financing her dreams for bigger and brighter things. From a very early age, Julia was a fighter. She was hospitalized while waiting for her heart and was known to be tiny but feisty. She was a very healthy transplant child until 2015 when she was diagnosed with stage IV Non-Hodgkin lymphoma. She tackled 3 months of inpatient chemotherapy with a bold smile and a courageous spirit. When she relapsed in 2018, she readied herself for another battle. She was a star patient who was often joking with the staff and would play her ukulele and sing to others. Julia was such an inspiration on how to face incredibly tough challenges with a winning attitude. Her gifted heart gave us an additional 20 years, 8 months, and 6 days. None of it was wasted! She lived freely and without limits. We miss her tremendously and we know that pain will never go away. The impact she had on this world is immeasurable. She was unique, kind, and beautiful.....a wonderful daughter, sister, granddaughter, niece, cousin, and friend. Julia is forever cherished by her parents Lisa (Jim) Galas and Dave (Candice) Evans, siblings Lily, Blake, Claire, Jackson, Lincoln, Michael, and Joseph; grandparents Patsy and Paul Evans and Dee and Jim Stark; and multiple aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. Visitation will be held on Saturday March 12th, from 10am-noon at O'Brien-Sullivan Funeral Home, 41555 Grand River Ave., Novi, MI 48375. A memorial service will be held at noon. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan, the Ronald McDonald House of Great Cincinnati. www.rmhcincinnati.org or Wish Upon a Teen www.wishuponateen.org The family would like to thank the medical and nursing staff at the Cleveland Clinic Coronary Intensive Care Unit for their outstanding care of our Julia.

Julia Denise Evans

October 4, 2000 - February 28, 2022