One year ago, on December 16, 2008, a tragedy struck the CyFair Christian Church family with the passing of the 13-year-old junior high student, Nicole “Lillyh” Lalime, after being hit by a drunk driver. This is a tragedy that most still remember vividly and deal with on a daily basis. But just as “Lillyh’s” vibrant personality and giving soul touched us in life, she brought out some of the best in the members of CFCC with the sharing of her passion in her passing.

Her dedication to the charity, Living Water, through Advent Conspiracy sparked a change for the better. Living Water is an organization that drills wells in developing nations to bring fresh, clean drinking water to individuals who have no such source. Last year the congregation of CFCC raised over $25,000 in the spirit of advent to drill three water wells in Honduras. This year, remembering the heart of one young teen, CFCC will be hosting Denver and the Mile High Orchestra for a Christmas benefit concert with all donated proceeds going directly to Advent Conspiracy and Living Water. The concert will be held on Tuesday, December 15th at 6:30pm at CyFair Christian Church located at 9730 Grant Rd., Houston, TX 77070.

Junior high pastor, Dave Chavez, wrote this about Lillyh:

“Remembering Nicole Lalime is one of my favorite pastimes. I can still see her dressed in her pink acid washed jeans with a pink tutu and her feet graced with multi-colored converse. She wore her favorite t-shirt which playfully displayed a beautiful rainbow and upon her head danced a ridiculously large yellow bow. Oh, and one more thing; she wore a tail. That’s right, a tail. As you can possibly imagine, Nicole, or Lillyh as she liked to be called, did not spend too much time concerning herself about what others thought about her, mainly because she was too busy thinking of others.

“I heard countless stories of Lillyh’s compassion for others as she would befriend those who were friendless or share her lunch with those who were hungry. You couldn’t help but like Lillyh, but at the same time you almost couldn’t help be a little offended by her because on the inside you wished you were more like her. She lived a carefree life uninhibited by fear or the pressures of this world to conform to what it thought she should be. Her view of life was much grander and would not be shadowed by such trivial things.

“One of Lillyh’s grander visions was to help ensure that people around the world would have the basic necessity of clean water. She made it her mission to raise awareness about this issue by dedicating her time, energy and money to Living Water International. At Christmas time she participated in an event called Advent Conspiracy which challenged us to rethink how we spend our money at Christmas time. Her youth group was challenged to give up one Christmas present and give that money that would have been spent to Living Water. Lillyh’s compassionate heart wouldn’t let her just give up one present. In fact she said, “I can not think of anything I want or need that is more important than people having clean water, so don’t get me any Christmas presents.” She responded this way for two years.”

Tickets are available at the church office Monday through Friday. The cost is $10 for adults and $5 for Children 12 and under and a love offering will be collected for Advent Conspiracy in honor of Lillyh. If you are unable to attend the concert, but would like to make a donation, you may send a check to:

CyFair Christian Church
9730 Grant Rd.
Houston, TX 77070

Write “Advent Conspiracy” in the memo line.

It is through this event that we will remember and honor Lillyh. Hers was a life that truly exemplified love.