When a grieving father turned to Reddit to ask for some help recovering music files that belonged to his late wife, his fellow users were quick to jump on the opportunity to help him out.
Jared Buhanan-Decker reportedly lost his 30-year-old wife, Sharry, during childbirth earlier this year. After she died, their newborn, James Francis, was also in a health crisis after being left with no oxygen, KUTV-TV reported.
According to a GoFundMe page set up to raise funds for James and Jared, the resulting health conditions could be permanent.
It was after Sharry’s death that Jared discovered an electronic file that had lullabies his wife had written — a file that was in a format he was unable to open. So, he turned to the “Audio Engineering” subgroup on Reddit and posted a message in July asking if anyone would help convert the files.
“I just want to be able to hear her voice again,” Jared wrote, including a photo of Sharry along with his plea.
It didn’t take long for someone to respond that the request would be completed in just one hour. Another user also offered to mix in guitar music to help round out the lullabies, according to KUTV-TV.
Jared later told Zoomin TV USA that he was blown away by the response he received from multiple parties who were more than interested in helping him recover the audio.
“All these things are pieces of her that she’s left behind,” he said. “I was hoping maybe one or two people (would respond) … When so many people responded I was blown away.”
According to Sharry’s obituary, she died on June 16 in Salt Lake City, Utah, leaving behind five brothers and one sister in addition to her husband and child.
The GoFundMe fundraising drive ended up bringing in more than $44,000 dollars to help Jared and his son.
Jared continues to provide updates about how he and James are doing in the wake of Sharry’s death, writing candidly on his blog about the pain he has felt in the months since losing his wife.
“My catastrophic experience of losing my best friend and soul mate on the day that was supposed to be our happiest has resonated with many people who in turn have opened up to me. This is true for multiple reasons,” he wrote back in September. “Sharry was a great light in the world and people take note when someone like her is extinguished at such a young age. The tragedy is many couples’ greatest fear…losing your most important person in a freak turn of events.”
He went on to say that suffering is a part of life for everyone, and that he’s been amazed by the depth of pain and heartache he’s seen others — as well as himself — face. Read his blog here.
(H/T: KUTV-TV)