Megan Christine McNerney went to be with her Heavenly Father on July 30th, following a sudden respiratory and cardiac arrest a week earlier.
Megan was born February 9, 1985. Affected by cerebral palsy since before her birth, she enjoyed a higher level of care throughout her life. She was baptized at St John Catholic Church in Greenwood and grew up in the Kirkland-Woodinville area.
Megan blessed the lives of many caregivers and therapists, whom she loved as family. She developed a love for horseback riding at Little Bit Therapeutic Riding Center for 20 years. As a toddler, she couldn’t wait to don her tiny cowgirl boots each week.
Megan liked traveling and was very aware of her surroundings and any deviation from expected routes. She was familiar with the location of every elevator at all the local shopping malls. Non-verbal her entire life, Megan would wave directions from her wheelchair, commanding the adjustment of window blinds or a side trip to Nordstrom’s elevator. She eventually gained the confidence and motivation to briefly walk on her own by a desire to access nearby elevators.
The outdoors were special to Megan. She enjoyed rolling along forest trails and feeling the rhythm that timber bridges played 
on the wheels of her jogger stroller. August would sometimes find her at the base of a waterfall or in the cool stream of air issuing from the Big Four Ice Caves. She took delight in riding ferries and anticipated the hum of grated sections of bridge decking. She especially loved spending time at her grandparents’ cabin on Dabob Bay, and giggled with delight upon hearing the song of the Swainson’s thrush, or Grandma Gloria’s rendition of “How Much is that Doggie in the Window?”
Her cowgirl boots and fleece notwithstanding, Megan had a definite girly side. She preferred some of the more bright shades of pink, and some of her more chiseled male doctors. She liked to people-watch at the malls and enjoyed listening to girl talk, sprinkled with as much drama as possible. Occasional commotion and mayhem were seen as treats to Megan, even when she needed to be the catalyst. Many a straight back chair, or an occasional water glass, fell victim to her quick hands. Once she nearly scored a full beverage tray, but the surprised waitress was exceptionally agile and blessedly understanding. In fact, restaurant outings were another of Megan’s favorite social activities. But, she also enjoyed quiet dinners at home – preferably with at least 20 relatives – and always topped off with chocolate pudding and a noisy shot of canned whipped cream.
Megan’s preference for stimulation was also evident in her preference for spicy food and for the wilder rides at Disneyland. After years, she would still giggle with anticipation upon hearing the admonition to “…hold on to them hats and glasses, cuz this here’s the wildest ride in the wilderness!” A good, solid earthquake or a train derailment would not be lost on Megan.
Megan had a great love for music and rhythm. She also loved the sound of youthful voices that were part of so many of her media pieces. She enjoyed the joyful music and young lectors that enlivened Life Teen Mass at her parish church. In the summertime she would occasionally explore other parishes on Sunday afternoon road trips extending from Sammamish to Covington. For Megan, the rainy season was punctuated by a succession of birthdays and holiday gatherings, and she was especially comforted by Christmas music. However, Megan perfected the practice spreading Christmas cheer throughout the year. She could easily listen to her various Christmas CDs and DVDs 365 days a year. And she also expected to watch Jeopardy six nights a week. In the evening it was always the same routine: time for Jeopardy, then time for bed. As if a signal to her family that things were as they should be, this is exactly how Megan drifted off to sleep for the last time.
But above everything that Megan seemed to cherish, she adored all those people who gave meaning to her concept of life, of love, and of God. She would become visibly excited as soon as the passing scenery suggested that a detour through Bothell or Woodinville was in the works. In fact, Megan’s love-hate relationship with anticipation and suspense required that any grandparent visit be announced only after the trip was in progress. She loved her sister and brother in law and drew great comfort and security from them. Megan’s mom was a constant loving companion and tireless advocate. Megan and her dad had a special relationship characterized by adventure and joy, but always founded on mom’s hard work. Numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, and neighbors showed their love for Megan in ways that were often visible and sometimes subtle.
Megan also had a large community of caregivers who have become her second family – and in fact a third family, when her several hospitalizations are included. These men and women, serving in various professional capacities, have helped Megan enjoy the best that life could offer her. Her family would like to thank the physicians and staff at Fircrest Residential Habilitation Center and at Northwest Hospital & Medical Center for their consistent and thorough services, and for their kind concern.
Megan charmed all who met her with her dancing eyes, contagious laugh, and wonderful sense of humor. More than a few have wished they had her hair and lashes. She lacked nothing in life that is lasting, but in stimulating God’s love in so many others, she takes all that she gave away into her new life.
Megan is survived by her parents Jim and Karen, her sister and brother in law Carrina and Michael, her grandparents Tom and Gloria McNerney, her grandmother Donna Sowler, and numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. Megan was preceded into new life by her cousin Briana Hart, her uncle Mike McNerney, and her grandpa Craig Sowler.
Services:
Funeral Mass
11:00 am, Wednesday August 6, 2014
Holy Family Catholic Church (www.hfkparish.org)
7045 120th Ave NE
Kirkland WA 98033
Reception with refreshments following
Private Committal Service
Holyrood Cemetery
Shoreline WA
Remembrance Suggestions:
Friends of Fircrest
Fircrest School
15230 15th Ave NE
Shoreline WA 98155
Little Bit Therapeutic Riding Center
Dunmire Stables
18675 NE 106th St
Redmond WA 989052