Kelsie Marie | Shop – Kelsie Marie Photography

VETERAN. BEREAVED FIANCE. CREATIVE. COMEBACK KID.

On June 8th, 2022, At 9:25 p.m. – 58 Days Before Our Wedding – 3 Marines Knocked On My Door…

how I got here

As soon as I heard the knock – I knew it.

I didn’t want to believe it.
I didn’t want to face it.
I didn’t even want to open the door…

Three years prior, I had just finished serving my active duty obligation with the United States Marine Corps.

And was in the early stages of constructing my new life as a civilian.

Nick (my husband to be) encouraged me to pursue my photography passion professionally.

Together, Nick and I were renovating our home and planning a beautiful wedding.

We were on track, doing things "the right way," complete with being the best dog parents to our black lab, Finnegan.

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We were establishing a foundation, the bedrock for our life together.

Together, Nick and I were renovating our home and planning a beautiful wedding. We were on track, doing things "the right way," complete with being the best dog parents to our black lab, Finnegan.

But on that night – June 8th 2022 – 58 days before our wedding… my entire world fell apart…

I’d text Nick several times that day, but with no response…

That’s why when I heard the knock, I knew it…

My fiancé, Capt Nick "Sloppy" Losapio was killed in an aviation training accident in the Southern California Desert.

I lost the love of my life.

I lost our future.
I lost the promise of a lifetime of love, adventure and family.

In the aftermath of a compounded tragedy, I found myself, a fiancée, facing all of the things a widow would, without the marriage certificate and title: a widow.

There is no government paperwork with a box to check that reads, "Gold Star Fiancee."

But that's what I am, an almost Gold Star Wife.

A Widow, Almost.

I was 58 days shy of being Nick's wife. This meant that I was also...
58 days short of Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance
58 days short of a Survivor Benefit Plan
58 days short of a lifetime of health insurance
58 days short of the Death Gratuity

Those 58 Days Guaranteed:

I was left with only the rubble but none of the qualifications for the vital resources to alleviate the financial pressure that accompanies loss.

[Our home mortgage without the equal contributor.]

[Our wedding to attend, despite the missing groom.]

[Our bills and combined obligations, now falling solely on me.]

But here's what those 58 days don't know about me...

I am resilient.

I’m not going to let this be my story

because, while it’s a reality that my love and foundation are gone, I still have hope in the life that we were building, and I plan to preserve his dreams and legacy.

I am pouring my heart into my photography business.

I am turning my passion into the career that Nick manifested for me.

I have found healing in the journey.

I feel Nick's winks from heaven as he guides me towards a career dedicated to preserving the memories of others.

I’m fighting to keep our home, where our memories still live.

I rejoined the Marines as a Reservist.

And I began working with other foundations to help others in my position.

I will keep caring for our family [Finnegan], friends, and accomplishing our dreams together, just now without our co-pilot.