12.09.1998 - 03.09.2007

Chesapeake, VA

On March 9, 2007, 8-year-old Raven Maria Blanco passed away unexpectedly, leaving family and friends with the challenge of learning to live in a world dimmed by her absence. Raven’s passing was devastating, especially to her parents. In an instant, the world cracked, swallowed joy, and the little angel disappeared. Imagine a room of bright lights, glittered streamers, laughter bouncing off the walls, star-lit ceilings, and music dancing in the air – then darkness and silence, disorientation and pain. There are no words to express the void we have in our hearts. Raven’s short, spirited life touched so many people; we are truly blessed for each and every moment we had in her presence.

Raven died under conscious sedation during a routine dental procedure. The autopsy showed Raven had a blood concentration of 24 mg/L of chloral hydrate — three times the average range — which the medical examiner considered lethal.

After the loss of Raven, her mother Robin clings to her daily routine as a way of somehow maintaining normalcy. She constantly adds items to her to-do list; staying busy is a band aid to the wound that never heals. Robin also helps her other two children deal with the loss of their sister. Raven was the oldest, the one they looked up to. Now when they miss her, they look to the Heavens to feel the sun rays of her heart and the glimmering stars of her curiosity. Robin also devotes her time to making a difference in the lives of children.

Mario, Raven’s father, watched his world crumble after the death of his first born child. He left living, lost somewhere in the limbo of grief. He could not move in the fog. For a little over a year, Mario spent his day’s sitting by his daughter’s gravesite and writing to Raven on her website every day. One day, love and chance gave Mario the strength to pick himself up. Thus begun the RMBF, Inc..

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