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CEDAR CITY — A 5-year-old girl whose battle with Type 1 diabetes made its way around the world earlier this year was remembered this weekend in a unique way — on the wings of a rehabilitated golden eagle.
Kycie Terry was diagnosed with diabetes in January after she went into Diabetic Ketoacidosis. The little girl's struggle to recover inspired many across the world, as over 40,000 people followed her Facebook page, Kisses for Kycie.
On July 11, Kycie "peacefully passed away in her fathers arms and with her mother by her side," her parents, Josh and Jamie Terry, posted on her Facebook Page.
To honor the the child's life, and the impact she's made on Type 1 diabetes awareness, the Southwest Wildlife Foundation invited her parents to help release a golden eagle in the mountains above Cedar City on Saturday.
"It's a common belief among many native people around the world that if you say your prayers with an eagle feather, the eagle feather will carry your prayers to God," explained Martin Tyner, a rehabilitator at Southwest Wildlife Foundation.
The eagle was cared for by the foundation after becoming separated from his parents. Now older and well enough to be on his own, the foundation decided it was time to let him fly.
Tyner gave Kycie's father the honor of releasing the bird himself. It was an act that proved symbolic.
"The morning Kycie passed away, I held her tight. I could feel that she was leaving, I could feel that she was about to fly away," Josh said. "I saw her fly away, and so (today) I let the bird go and it flapped and it flew ... I mean, Kycie's with us today. She was here as the eagle was released."
Josh and Jamie said they are overwhelmed by the support they've received from people they don't even know, many expressing gratitude to them for sharing Kycie's story. It means so much to them "to know the difference that she made and to know the lives that she touched," Jamie said.
For more information on Kycie Terry's story visit her Kisses for Kycie Facebook page. For information on Type 1 diabetes visit the American Diabetes Association's website, www.diabetes.org.
Contributing: Stace Hall, Megan Marsden Christensen
