Goodbye Jamie Dedes

Peace, I leave you; My peace, I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives.

Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27

I’ve been saddened by the news of fellow blogger/friend/American activist Jamie Dedes’ passing. I knew she’d been ill for some time. I had hoped I’d hear information that she was recovering and gaining strength. I grew concerned when Hospice came in to care for her during the beginnings of COVID. I’d seen some news on Facebook about her death but hesitated and question its truth.

Now, her son Richard, has posted this information on Facebook:

Hi, everyone,

This is Richard (Jamie’s son).

I know the word has gone out about Jamie’s passing, but haven’t been able to contact everyone directly. Karen and I have been seeing your posts and tributes and genuinely appreciate your love and kind words. I will be continuing to monitor Mom’s Facebook page and maintain her websites. Please feel free to reach out but forgive me if it takes time to respond. I’m still getting everything sorted out. Delighted to be connecting with you all!

Love and respect, Richard

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I met Jamie through a series of challenges at mutual blog sites. Soon, she started to create challenges of her own. She created ‘The Bardo Group’ ‘The BeZine’ ‘The Poet by Day’.

The Poet by Day is dedicated to supporting freedom of artistic expression and human rights. ©jamiededes’

I joined in and found her encouraging critiques of my writing extremely helpful. When I had doubts she inspired me with words to forge on. She said I had a unique writing style and that I shouldn’t change it. My poetry writing insecurities began to fade with every optimistic praise she gave me. Although I enjoy writing stories more than poetry, I continued to write poems because of her.

We found a commonality in our backgrounds. She was born and raised in Brooklyn in a neighborhood not too far from my own. She posted photos of familiar places we both knew.

On one of my posts, I added a photo of myself. I remember her response was, “You’re my sister from another mother.”

She never thought of fellow writers as competitors. They were her motivation to help create great writers.

I will miss her inspiring words. Her blog will be up for a while. If you haven’t read her ‘Words of Art’ pop over to her blog. You won’t be disappointed. I’m always left breathless by her words.

To all who knew her and whose lives she’s touched including her family:

May your troubled hearts find peace and comfort in the knowledge that you are not alone.

May God’s presence ease your trembling spirit and give you rest.

He is there to cast sunlight into all of your darkened shadows, to send encouragement through the love of friends and family, and to replace your weariness with new hope.

Blessings … Rest in Peace, Jamie