EPHRAIM, Utah — A tightly knit central Utah community has come together to show support for a local family grieving the loss of their 12-year-old daughter to a sudden brain aneurysm.
"I honestly have no words," said Mollie Rasmussen through teams Monday. "People have been so great and supportive, we haven’t felt alone."
Rasmussen lost her youngest child and only daughter, Ally, to a brain aneurysm on Friday night.
"It was just so sudden," added Mollie.
According to Ally’s dad, Josh, she had been at volleyball practice in the family's hometown of Ephraim where he snapped a picture of his daughter hours before she died in her new jersey she was so excited to wear.
"I know a lot of people suffer and I know a lot of people have gone through loss," said Josh.
A band teacher at a local middle school, Josh shared how the family has been surrounded by more love than they could have imagined.
"Before we knew it, there were all these kids putting up bows out in the snow, we could see the footprints and they put bows everywhere and signs and before we knew it, people starting coming," he said.
"There really is no way to thank everybody," added Mollie, "but we appreciate them."
The Rasmussen's said they were overwhelmed by support at a candlelight vigil organized Saturday night.
"They just said you should come out and there were a thousand people that showed up and they just kept coming around the corner," Josh explained. "I don’t know, it’s just awesome."
The family knows that although she was just 12 years old, Ally had already made her mark on so many. On Monday, they wore shirts dropped off at their home anonymously that said "Love Like Ally."
"She was a lover, she hugged everyone she knew, even people she didn’t," Mollie shared about her daughter. "She thought everyone was her best friend. And she just genuinely loved people."
Ephraim Elementary School offered grief counseling to students who were having a hard time processing the sudden loss of Ally, their sixth-grade classmate, with many wearing blue, her favorite color.
"We’ve had people reach out from all over, and being in a small community, I know there are kids in Nephi who wore blue and I just got a picture from North Sanpete High and they were all wearing blue," said Mollie. "Just people are so great."
"Just knowing that people are there and that we’re loved. We feel people’s prayers," Josh added. "It means a lot. It means a lot."
The Rasmussen's say the outpouring of support from family and friends helps comfort them, along with their faith. They are now encouraging others to reach out to someone who may be going through tough times, saying even the smallest kind gesture can mean the world to someone who, like them, are in their darkest hour.
