Cross Junction, VA - In Loving Memory

A Rare Beauty. A Fierce Kindness. A Quiet Strength.

Some souls do not simply live—they glow.

Deborah was one of them.

She was crowned Fort Hill Homecoming Queen in 1970, a title she accepted with bemused grace. Yes, she was beautiful—effortlessly so, but it wasn't the kind that begged to be seen. It was the kind that made you feel seen.

She was the beloved daughter of William and Janet Cassell, now reunited with them amongst the stars. She also joins her brothers, Richard and David, and her niece, Kimberly Jackson, all waiting now in a place beyond sorrow, where love does not end.

She was the steadfast wife of Reed A. Erickson, her companion in every true sense through seasons of joy and pain, and through the sacred ordinary of life, which she turned into something beautiful.

A beloved mother, grandmother, sister, and aunt— not just in title, but in devotion. Her children are her living legacy: Jessica Zembower Wolfe and husband Kenneth, Lauren Zembower, Katelyn Erickson and husband David Lee, Kelly Erickson, Kimberly Erickson and husband Robert Zimmerman, and Kasia Merrill. Her grandchild, and joy of her days: Gwendoline Rose Wolfe. Sisters-in-law: Vicki and Cindy Cassell. As well as scores of nieces and nephews, and their beautiful children spread across the country.

Her family was her temple. Each one cradled in her spirit. Each one tended with care. Her love was not performative. It was protection. It was presence. It was making sure you knew that—even when the world was cruel — she was there for your fierce protection.

Her home was sacred ground. She lived close to the earth - watching the shimmer of leaves, breathing in the hush of wind, gathering moments like wildflowers and weaving them into a path that always led us back to her.

Even now, though her form has slipped from view, she is still there. She is still woven into our world. She lives now in the trees, in the wind, in the way we love one another more fiercely — because she showed us how.

So let us not remember her only with tears. Let us remember her with awe.