Search Results

PADILLA -- Heather Dawn (Sanders) Padilla, 23-year-old lifetime resident of Albuquerque, took wing with the angels on December 12, 2003. Heather was the beloved wife of Jeff Padilla; the darling daughter of Marjorie A. Ogden and Gerald E. "Jason" Sanders; cherished step-daughter of Thomas D. Ogden; and the admired and respected older sister of Joshua L. Sanders and Thomas A. Ogden, all of Albuquerque. Heather is also survived by maternal grandparents, Julia and Dale Martin; paternal grandmother, Janice Sanders (Boise, Idaho), aunts Gale Gillen and Faye Montoya; cousins, Molly and Emmy Gillen; mother-in-law, Linda Wheelock; father-in-law, Ben Padilla (Amarillo, Texas); sister-in-law, Lisa Herman (Las Vegas, Nevada); nephews, Michael Haas and Lawrence Herman (Las Vegas, Nevada); grandmother-in-law, Arlene Boddy; and numerous other family members, friends, and co-workers who love her dearly and who will miss her tremendously. Heather was a 1999 graduate of Sandia High School. She had worked as a certified pharmacy technician and was most proud to have earned both state and national certification. Heather married the love of her life, Jeff Padilla, on April 20, 2002. Although Heather and Jeff had not yet been blessed with children, they were the proud parents of two precocious cats, "Cinder" and "Ella". Heather's flight from this earth ended a lifelong struggle against cancer, which began just before her second birthday. Over the last 20 years, she had amazed her doctors by surviving four occurrences of a particularly lethal form of cancer. During her second bout in 1989, Heather was treated to a trip to Disneyland by the Make-A-Wish Foundation. The next year, she was later honored to become a United Way Campaign poster child, seen on television and in newspapers thanking supporters of Camp Enchantment, a camp for children with cancer, sponsored by the American Cancer Society. After losing her most recent fight against pneumonia, Heather was borne aloft by the winds of love from a roomful of family and friends who had gathered to see her soar away. A celebration of Heather's flight and a Memorial Service for those of us left behind will be held on Thursday, December 18, 2003 at 6:00 p.m. in the Alumni Chapel on the UNM campus. Anyone wishing to share your special story of how Heather touched your life will be welcome to attend and participate. In lieu of flowers, the family requests expressions of sympathy be made in the form of donations in Heather's name to the Make-a-Wish Foundation, the American Cancer Society, or the Ronald McDonald House.
        Published on: Thu December 18, 2003