On December 29th, 2013, at the young age of 30, Christopher McMeekin lost his lifetime battle with his health. He was visiting family in California and passed away in his sleep. His heart simply gave out. His family and friends are trying desperately to get him home to his parents in Missouri and help pay for services.
This is Chris's story, written by his best friend:
"Your Light shone bright... Chris was definitely the best person I ever knew. He was a sickly guy working at Denny's as a server when we met many many years ago. We would all go up to Denny's and have coffee and food 'til the wee hours of the mornings and Chris would take care of us. Just by looking at him you knew he had been through some hard times. At a very young age he found out he was Type one diabetic. The battle to control his sugars started then. It was an up and down battle but he never gave up. in his teens he contracted Blastomycosis in his lungs... this was the first time he died. During the next few weeks and a ton of surgeries Chris actually died 2 times to be revived by the doctors that cared for him. But, that boy never gave up! After having 1/2 a lung removed Chris started getting better and as soon as he could went back to living life to its fullest. But that wasn't enough for Fate as he contracted another form of lung fungus that took his life once again. The doctors revived him yet again and he went under extensive surgery which cost him 1 lung and a part of the other. He still didn't give up!
Chris was skinny, weighed next to nothing. Scars 3-36 inches long riddled his body from the many surgeries to keep him alive. Yet as soon as he could, and when anyone else would have given up and stopped trying, Chris kept pushing to become healthier. He worked over 40 hours a week to help support his parents, and family that he loved. He was always the first person to help you when you needed the help. The first person to listen when you needed to talk. He loved gaming... particularly Runescape. Runescape was his escape and we gamed together a lot there. When we were miles apart there was always the game. When he needed a break from reality there was the game. Chris also loved RPG, Anime, vampires, zombies, and all sort of fantasy ideas. Things a lot of you already knew, at least those that knew him.
Things you might not have known... He always tried his hardest to make sure his phone bill was paid so that he could accept calls from his brother that was locked up. Being there for his brother meant the world to him, and he would send him money whenever he could... If he was hungry and had food but there was someone else near him that was hungry Chris would always give his food to that hungry person... When people were on the street and needed someplace to sleep Chris would open his doors to them... That man had such a big heart! People used him all the time for his kindness. They took what he had to offer then walked away when he was in need. That's what was happening when we met. One day he stopped by my house with a couple people just to chill. He never said a word about his situation that December day, but as I walked down my driveway I saw all the stuff in his car and wondered what it was all there for. Found out that his roommates had cost him his home with their loud and obnoxious constant partying and that he was living out of his car. He moved in with me for the first time that day. For the next many years we stayed close. I got in some trouble, he wrote me, took a few calls, etc... when I had no where to go and nothing to get there with that Man took from his already empty pocket and moved me across the country to be with him. That was 9 years ago.
We worked together at McDonald's... not the best job in the world but we did what needed to be done. He helped me get my tools back together to continue my piercing career. If not for him, I would not be piercing today, I would have given up on my passion, he would not let me. It took me years to pay him back, and 7 days ago I sent him the last $100 that I owed him. It is still sitting in the Money Gram office right now. As always and at least once a week I called him to tell him he could pick up the money and he informed me his stomach was not right. He couldn't hold anything down and had no reasons why. I gave him the confirmation number and he said when he could get around he would grab it up, but til then he was going to a friends house so that someone could help care for him. I tried to call on Xmas but his phone had been disconnected. I figured like always he would either call me with a new number, or let me know online what was going on. On the 27th I had waited too long and started making calls and hunting him down. That night I got in touch with someone that informed me he was in the hospital, doing fine, just getting the nourishment he needed because he couldn't keep food in his stomach. 12-29-13 Christopher McMeekin passed away in his sleep. They say there was no suffering, that he went in peace... This is good because he deserved that and more. Life was very hard for that Man, yet he never gave up. He never stopped fighting, he never stopped working, he never stopped caring for those he loved. I was one of those, and my love for him was mirrored. There will never be a replacement. People like him do not exist in today's world. He was the last of his kind. I will miss you Chris! I will keep up the fight for you."
