This is so beautiful: A little girl’s family made her funeral a tea party

Julianna Snow of Vancouver, Washington had been in and out of hospitals for almost her entire five-year-old life due to her incurable neuromuscular disorder, Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease (CMT), and it was killing her. So she decided that the next time her life was threatened by the disease, she would pass away peacefully instead of going to the hospital once again for treatment. And as a celebration of her life, she had a funeral perfect for her glitter-loving, princess self: a tea party.

Doctors said that there was “no light at the end of the tunnel” for Julianna, so she passed away in her home with her family on June 14th, 2016. “She died at home, in her princess room and in my arms,” her mother, neurologist Dr. Michelle Moon, told CNN. “She died exactly where she wanted to die. She went after 18 beautiful months [in hospice]. She didn’t go after a year of horrible hospitalizations. I take comfort knowing that it happened in the way she wanted it to happen.”

Julianna loved pink, tiaras, glittery nail polish, and tea parties. So Michelle and her husband, former Air Force Pilot Steve Snow, threw their beloved daughter a “Tea Party Celebration of Life” the following Saturday at City Bible Church.

“I’m hoping it’s an over the top, joyful explosion that brings people together to have fun and enjoy,” Michelle told CNN. “That’s what she loved to do, and what she was so good at facilitating. We wanted to make J proud.”

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The party was held at the church with lots of pink balloons and posters reading “Text from Julianna: Arrived in heaven! I am healed! Thank you for your love! Hope to see you in God’s time.”

Friends arrived wearing not somber black, but floral print dresses and shirts. The hall was decorated with all of her favorite things, such as bright colors and *lots* of glitter. Guests could give each other manicures at the “nail bar” and decorate cupcakes. One of the tables was filled with her favorite toys which were given to the children attending.

However, perhaps one of the most beautiful elements of the tea party was a large banner hanging that bore Julianna’s own quote: “Love is a superpower.”

We could not agree more. Our hearts go out to Julianna’s loved ones during this tragically difficult time.

Julianna’s Tea Party — “Rainbow” from Michelle Moon on Vimeo.