Giamie Ann Gallero November 12, 1992 - June 17, 2005 "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints."

I was making a hospital visit late in the evening along with Barb and Heidi. After praying with our member who was in the hospital because of a motorcycle accident, a nurse asked me to meet a family a few doors down across the hall. There we met Jackie Gallero and her 12 year old daughter, Giamie.

The Gallero family was working abroad in Italy in 2004 when Giamie began to have trouble walking. She had terrible pain in her left leg. Soon, Giamie was diagnosed to have a cancerous bone tumor in her left thigh. The family brought her back to the Philippines and by the grace of God we were able to meet her in the hospital that evening.

Giamie's leg was terribly swollen. Words cannot describe her leg and the pain she must have been feeling. She also had developed a boil on her knee that raised nearly 12 inches. And in the past few months, the had cancer had spread throughout her body and into her lungs.

We were glad to meet the Gallero family and wanted to help them. And we knew that first things must be first--Salvation. Heidi and I left the room to cry and pray for Giamie to be saved while Barb shared the gospel with Jackie and Giamie. In just a few minutes, they both accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Saviour. Praise the Lord!!!!!

When I left the room that evening, I told Giamie to hang in there in and that I would see her the next day. She simply nodded her head as if to say okay. Then I gave her the "thumbs up" and that is when she smiled so big, lifted her arm, and gave me the "thumbs up," too. This would become our ritual everytime I left Giamie.

I also learned that Giamie liked ice cream. And so I would stop at Mc Donalds or Jollibee and get her a little sundae before I went to the hospital. This always seemed to lift her spirits just a little.

Soon, the decision was made that her leg would be amputated. The surgery was risky because Giamie was so very sick. And Jackie informed me that the amputation would not spare her life, but only make it more comfortable for whatever time she had left. I was with Giamie in Manila when they rolled her into surgery, and in four hours I was praying with her in the recovery room.

Less than two weeks after the surgery, Giamie was well enough to visit our church. It was a very sweet day. She sat on the front row in her wheel chair and listened to the service. We presented her with the "Lion's Heart Award" for the courage she had during those difficult days. Giamie even came to our apartment for spaghetti--and of course, ice cream.

It was amazing to me that in those difficult days Giamie could usually find the strength to smile.

I was able to visit with Giamie a couple times a week. I took my guitar and we all sang songs about heaven. I took my laptop so that I could show her pictures. She became very interested in the computer. I taught her how to drop pictures onto the story line in a video program and helped her to make a ten minute video of her pictures. There were over 100 pictures showing her life from the time she was a baby to her 12th birthday party.

It was very hard for Giamie to come to church, but on our final Sunday night before heading to the states, she came to our farewell party. Nathan and I carried her with her wheel chair down her stairs, Loaded her in our van and brought her to the service. We dropped her off at home just minutes before we headed to the airport to fly to America. When I was leaving, I honked my horn and waved at Giamie. She looked over her shoulder and gave me the biggest smile as she waved good bye. That would be the last time I would see Giamie. That is, until I get to Heaven.

A couple weeks after we left, Giamie took very ill and started what would be her final battle with her cancer. Her lungs filled with fluid and she could hardly breathe. Then her mother texted me in the states and told me she had not eaten in several days. Later that same day I received a simple text message that read, "My daughter is dead at 6 a.m."

I was driving in Florida between Sebastian and Vero Beach when I got the text. Heidi was with me and our eyes filled with tears as I told her the news. But I couldn't help but smile and think about Giamie jumping and skipping in Heaven with here glorified body. Wow! I told Heidi, "Giamie is well now, she has 2 new legs and will never suffer again." And I found myself looking up to Heaven and giving her the "thumbs up." Somehow I think she was smiling and giving me the "thumbs up," too.

God's grace was evident in the last few hours of Giamie's life. In one of her last conversations she told her mother she was not afraid to die because she knew she was going to Heaven. She commented that there would be no pain and suffering there. In the emergency room, she was looking around for her father who had not yet made it to the hospital. Giamie said, "I love you Papa, Chow Chow." (Chow Chow is a way of saying bye bye in Italy.) Giamie seemed to know that she was going to Heaven. Just before they placed a tube through her throat to help her breathe and drain her lungs, Giamie said, "Yes, Yes, Yes, Papa Jesus, Papa Jesus." These were her last words.

Several members of Giamie's family have been saved since we met her. Her 27 year old cousin died unexpectedly a few weeks before Giamie. We were able to hold a little funeral service for her and over 20 were saved. Then, at Giamie's funeral, we held a service and over 35 were saved. God is truly merciful. Jackie showed us the way to the place where Giamie is buried. I couldn't help but think, "Thank God we came to the Philippines."

We've had nearly a quarter of a million people saved here in the Philippines. None of them is more important than the other. But sometimes God does that special thing that only He can do and it seems to make everything all the better. God's people have sacrificed and spent a lot of money to support our efforts here. God has truly blessed. But, as Pastor Brown stated, if all we did was reach Giamie, it would be worth it all.

Only Heaven will reveal the impact of our efforts here. And it sure will be nice to see the thousands of folks who have accepted Jesus as their Saviour during our meetings. I will, however, be especially looking forward to seeing Giamie and giving her a glorified "thumbs up."

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