For anyone in the Trenton NJ/Philladelphia/New York City area, we’ve organized a memorial and Bench Dedication at her High School-The George School, in Newtown PA. Please RSVP if you’d like to attend. All friends of Heather’s are welcome

http://evite.me/ARmqdNfyzY

Heather filled a beautiful place in the hearts of many people and is so very much missed

Very very sorry hear this , The God with her.

Your “bleeding heart” plant in a large planter on the back deck where you loved to hang out, has sprung to life as the snow receded. There are perpetual reminders of you everywhere, Heather. Always in my heart.

Liz and I are together today, in honor of you. I thought of you as we browsed bold colors and funky dresses in a consignment shop, as you would do with us, if you were here. Remembering road trips and beautiful brave adventures with you, with the three of us. Love to all who was loved by and loved Heather, today!

Happy birthday, Heather. Thinking of you today.

I just learned of this tragic news, I was on a plane with her from DIA to Paris, in fact she had the exact seat I was assigned after asking to change, and even more random just the next row behind.
I was at kite fests in Hawaii, Germany, England, Belgium and many US events including Epcot with
her.
I loved Heather for who she was!
My heart is broken, feeling numb.
Of course a life way to short, but
she sure made a lot of what her time was.
I am blessed to have known her even if only for short fun flights.

From the beautiful memorial on June, 13th, this is the short story I wrote about a Heather moment-in-time from one Summer in New Mexico in our college years. Heather was always awe-inspiring to me! 

"Burning"

She hopped on one foot as she kicked off her steel-toed work boots. The shower running in the background, she stripped hurriedly, eager to pull the smoke off of her skin. She counted on heat of the water to soothe her sore muscles and aching hands. Axes and hard-hat were like a dead transformer silent in the corner. Solid bands of New Mexico sun bore into the cool basement apartment through indignant slat blinds over a single high, narrow window, and the glass front door. The Gypsy Kings on a combination CD-player clock-radio pushed her steps into a salsa formation. The urgency of pleasure and release was as liberating as the vast blue of the high-altitude desert sky. 
From an adrenaline-fueled fire line to an undulating sweaty dance-floor, in strap-y heels and a stringy dress, she was a feathery, gold-leafed comet hurling past the usual wide planets of convention and commitment, burning off the ice-y sediments of grief, loss, and uncertainty which had been piled onto, and covering up, the glowing spirit of her being, her core. 

POEM READ At MEMORIAL SERVICE:

Death is nothing at all. By Henry Scott-Holland

I have only slipped away to the next room.
I am I and, you are you.

Whatever we were to each other,

That, we still are.

Call me by my old familiar name.

Speak to me in the easy way 
as you always used to.

Put no difference into your tone.

Wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrow.
Laugh as we always laughed 
at the little jokes we enjoyed together.

Play, smile, think of me.
Pray for me.

Let my name be ever the household word
 that it always was.

Let it be spoken without effect.

Without the trace of a shadow on it.
Life means all that it ever meant.

It is the same that it ever was.

There is absolute unbroken continuity.

Why should I be out of mind 
because I am out of sight?
I am but waiting for you.


For an interval.

Somewhere.
Very near.

Just around the corner.
All is well.

I was told once that each person is a thread in grand tapestry. It might be a small thread in a subtle image in a corner, or it might be a main thread running through the central image. Heather’s thread ran through the so many parts; I am in awe of the breadth. Often when one has 5000 facebook friends, it risks stretching one rather thin, but the people who have come today from far and wide to honor her are a testament to how good a friend she was. Her classmates from High School and College have stood by her decades. People she shares dance and yoga and counseling with have shown up in enthusiastic numbers to honor her. Thank you for being here on this day to share love with our beautiful friend. For every person who is here, there were two more who shared their deepest regrets at not being able to attend who are here in spirit.
I know Heather as we stumbled through parenting pre-schoolers together. Our kids introduced us, and we found it easier to raise the kids together, so the next 16 years we were sister wives, taking our kids on adventures in Moab, waterworld, the Florida Keys, Lake Powell, and spending countelss hours and meals and hot tub therapy sessions in my backyard. When Heather left, I lost a sister, and my kids lost a mother. I look around and see that so many others feel just as deeply the pain of loss, for the many roles Heather played in their lives, and take comfort in the company of others she touched. At her going away party in July of 2019, as she embarked on the next adventure of life in Florida flying kites for Disneyworld, she said it was her greatest wish that her friends would know each other, as she held them all in such high esteem, and here we see her wish granted.
Heather was a great fan of the Jean Auel’s Clan of the Cave Bear books. I think she’s like to be returned to the Great Earth Mother: 

"Heather, the body your elan inhabited has died and will go into the black under the ground, but your elan, your spirit, will go to the world of the spirits. Do not grieve for you life here, spirit of Heather, go freely, go confidently. Do not linger . . your next life awaits you. "

We will miss you.

Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal. It’s clear Heather had a mighty impact on many people. I’m humbled by everyone that came today, and there are so many beloved friends and family who could not make it, but are sharing their unconditional love and support. Family is such a beautiful concept. Yes, you have your biological family, and those are the people that have an obligation to be there for you. But other people come into our lives that have such an impact that they’re more than a friend. They are an integral part of your life, and kind of act like family. So I like to think you can chose your family. And these people, these friends, are so incredibly special because they chose to be there for you purely because they wanted to. Heather is one of those people, she’s part of our chosen family. I can’t even remember when Heather came into our lives because I was so young, and she was around so much that I actually thought she was a relative for a good decade. She was even my emergency contact. We had weekly dinners, she came over for holidays, we even went on vacation together. From camping in Arches, to a house boat in Powell, and even across the country in Florida! I was lucky enough to be exposed into Heather’s world. From tasting her chocolate, to being her tango mentee, and watching her perform professionally with the silks and flying kites, she had every dream job a kid could want. She even worked for Disney! I wish I was talented enough to fly kites for a living. Heather even took me to circus camp to learn some silk skills. Let me tell you, that stuff is not easy. I looked like a flailing orangutang clinging to the silk with quivering arms as she soared upwards with rippling muscles and glided down gracefully like an effervescent swan. Spinning, flipping, and then catching herself at the bottom in a perfect split. She nailed everything she did. I learned something from her that has changed my life in the best ways, and I’m going to share it with you. Actually two things.
1. Say yes.
2. You are beautiful.
Heather is the most spontaneous person I know. Saying yes had stores selling the chocolate she made in her kitchen. Staying yes turned her into a world traveler. Saying yes turned her into an international performer. It may be cheesy, but she taught me to follow my passions, do what I love, and say yes to every spontaneous adventure. That mindset has sent my friends and I on six camping trips this semester alone that we decided on the night before to make the most of the COVID semester with everything shut down. And honestly, I’ve had the best semester of my life because I’ve gotten to explore so many beautiful parts of California and I’ve made lifelong connections with amazing people making memories that will last eternally. We called it pulling a Heather. Because she was the type of person to wake up and go to India because she had nothing better to do. As a matter of fact, I’m itching to pull a Heather soon. I think we can all agree that Heather is stunning. Like one of the most beautiful people I’ve ever seen. As most young girls are, I was very insecure about myself. When I was eight years old, she took me out for a girls day. We got our hair done, and she brought me to my first mani/pedi. While our nails were being painted, she turned to me and said, “Emily, beauty comes from within, once you recognize your beauty, everyone else will too. And every person is truly so beautiful and incredibly unique, but very few people know that because we’re such hard critics on ourselves. When you feel beautiful, your confidence rises, and that’s sexy.” She told me on the days you don’t feel pretty, tell yourself five things you love about yourself. Every time you say something negative about yourself and your body, say two nice things about you and your body. Slowly but surely, you fake it until you make it and then your light never dims. If anyone says otherwise about you, it’s just a reflection of how they feel about themself which they’re projecting onto you, so don’t let it get to you. Never underestimate yourself. I could go on for hours about this amazing woman and all of the things I’ve learned from her, but I’ll spare you the time. But I do have one request. I want everyone to think about three things you love about yourself, and then I want everyone to pull a Heather this summer. Thank you Heather, I love you and you will always be a second mother to me.

At a time in my life when I felt lost, you helped reignite the flame of intimacy, courage and grace in my heart. You taught me how to dance tango. You taught me how to dance with polarity; holding my body with a strong frame in a way where I could be lead, responsive to my lead, even when I had no idea what I was doing!

It was your presence that gave me the courage to show up and dance close even when I was scared, shy and insecure. It was your encouragement and your embodied confidence, elegance and beauty that inspired me to dream of maybe one day being able to dance even just a little bit like you.

But you weren’t just the dancer that every man and woman wanted to dance with and every woman wanted to dance like, you were also an adventurer dancing to the beat of your own drum in life. Daring. Being uniquely You. It’s not always easy paving your own path. But you did. And I saw that that choice also came with heartache. But it never deterred you because your strength of heart was bigger than any of the doubts; bigger than the pain. 

I stopped dancing when you had your accident. I think a lot of us did. I didn’t want to dance without you. And to be totally honest, I was pissed at God and also afraid of what had happened to you. You had changed in what seemed like, an instant. And I struggled with not being able to relate to you in the way I once had. And I also judged myself for not knowing how to face what I didn’t know. So I withdrew. 

But you never chose the path of staying the same like myself and so many of us brave souls in this world sometimes do. You dare. You risk. You dance closer. You say yes to life and living in all of it’s forms, despite the pain, the change, and the uncertainty. 

I remember seeing a video that Lissa shared to all of us goddesses from your Go Fund me page. It was you singing and dancing as you learned to walk again. 
Even through all that you endured you still CHOSE to dance and sing. 

Heather, I have an image of you eternally etched into my mind. It’s your warm, loving, sweet, beautiful face smiling with your mischievous smile that always made me think you knew a secret that no one else knew. You were a magical being very much delighting in the experiences and pleasures of life and yet your presence of patience, of unconditional loving of joy and connection stemming from your infinite unbearable compassion communicated that you were never of this world. You were God’s temporary gift to us. 

As I’ve been reflecting on you, one of your secrets came forward to me. And I want to share it with you all:

She taught it with Gregor in a Tango class at the ABC one day. She said something to the extent of In Tango, you can’t rush anything. And as a follower it’s especially alluring to do so. Or I guess I should say a follower who also sometimes likes to lead (which might resonate with some ladies that I know!). Sometimes the lead may pause. And as a ‘leading’ follower, there’s a tendency to want to hurry things along. But what’s really going on is the lead is giving the follower an opportunity to not lead, but add her embellishment to the dance.

In Tango an embellishment is the followers special touch, her artistry, her unique beauty and grace, her gift to the dance.

Heather and Gregor then showed us what that looked like and all I can say is WOW!!!!! 
The way Heather added embellishment was unlike anything else; it was show stopping- delicate yet bold and oooooohhhhhhh so sexy and yet totally sweet and understated all at once. 

So this is what I’ve learned from our dear, sweet, gracefully fierce, sexy and courageous goddess Heather:

There will always be very real circumstances and reasons in life to stay home, play small, hide away and lick our very painful wounds that life and love has given us. Its ok to do all of that AND in these times, I challenge myself and all of us to see these moments as Heather did- Invitations not to try to lead, but to add our embellishment to the dance of life with humility and grace. 

When we are in fear can we dare to dance closer to God and be more intimate with ourselves and one another? When we are hurting and in pain can we risk loving ourselves and others more not less. And when we are in uncertainty can we bravely bring forward what we do know, even and especially when it doesn’t feel like much? Because that IS our unique gift that we’ve been given by God to come here and share with the world; just as Heather did. 

So saddened to hear this news. One of my favorite events was Lead with Love in 2016 and Heather was a huge part of it.
Deepest condolences to Heathers family. Love and light from Durban, South Africa.

Recent story about Heather's accident from the Orlando Sentinel

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/tourism/os-prem-bz-disney-epcot-injury-20210503-fnjuluoy5ncqxm5scl7ymxromy-story.html

She was supposed to perform in an Epcot show at Disney. Instead, a brain injury upended her life.
By GABRIELLE RUSSON
ORLANDO SENTINEL
MAY 03, 2021 AT 1:04 PM
 
Heather Morrow, 47, suffered a traumatic brain injury while testing a kite at the Kiteman site off Sand Lake Road and John Young Parkway, according to Orange Circuit Court documents filed against her employer after Morrow and her mother sued in January 2020.
Heather Morrow’s father bought her a kite when she was young, and that hobby eventually morphed into a career that took her around the world performing aerial wonders.

Her next show was to be at Disney World at the Epcot Forever nighttime fireworks spectacular debuting in October 2019.

“She was very passionate about what she did and fell in love with kites a long time ago and wanted to share her passion,” said Bruce Flora, president of Orlando-based Kiteman Productions where she was working in summer 2019.

Tragedy struck about two months before the Epcot show kicked off.

Morrow, 47, suffered a traumatic brain injury while testing a kite at the Kiteman site off Sand Lake Road and John Young Parkway, according to Orange Circuit Court documents filed against her employer after Morrow and her mother sued in January 2020.

The folksy, upbeat woman from Colorado who loved Tango dancing and yoga slowly relearned how to walk while she racked up $5 million in medical bills from 10 brain surgeries and months in rehabilitation, according to her attorney Patton Youngblood.
But in the past few months, Morrow, mother of a teenage son, has suffered major setbacks. She had surgery on her ankles because she couldn’t lift her feet after spending so much time lying down. Her family has considered calling hospice, her attorney said.

“It’s really enraging to see her as she is now when she was really making progress. They literally had her standing and walking and now she’s just laying in bed trembling ... in a lot of pain,” Youngblood said.
Her family had started a GoFundMe page to help with her expenses, which have largely been covered by Medicaid.
Morrow was in Orlando to start getting ready for the Epcot show when she sat in the back of a vehicle’s cab, facing outward with the door open, as she held onto her kites’ handles on July 27, 2019, according to court documents.

Normally, flyers steer the large kites while they are harnessed to both the kite and attached to a vehicle or a boat so they won’t be lifted in the air, the lawsuit said.

But on this day, Morrow wasn’t secured into the truck, the lawsuit said, accusing the driver of not checking to make sure Morrow was safe first before starting.

“Watching the 8-foot to test the tails,” said a man filming as Morrow climbed in and took the handles with the kite propped up the vehicle. “Heather is flying.”

A female voice can be heard counting down, “5, 4, 3, 2, 1!″ and then the truck zoomed down what looks like a private road in an industrial area by a long white warehouse.

For about a second, the white kite jerkily popped up only a few feet off the ground and then fell back down again. Morrow, a small figure in the distance, can be seen hitting the pavement as she fell from the truck.
“Oh my God!” the man on the camera exclaimed and the video cuts out.

The lawsuit further described what happened.

“Unfortunately, as the vehicle moved and the rope/cord tightened and pulled the kite, the force pulled Ms. Morrow out of the back of the vehicle and she fell out of the vehicle, landing on her back and head, causing her to suffer a severe head injury,” court documents said.
The kite was “heavier than everyone thought it was going to be,” Youngblood said. “You wouldn’t think a kite of this size would give you that much pullback. The way it snapped when the rope tightened and that little, unexpected tug that was just enough to pull her out of the truck.”

Morrow’s injury was not reported to Occupational Safety and Health Administration, said agency spokesman Eric Lucero.
By law, employers are required to report when employees are hospitalized within 24 hours from a work-related incident to OSHA. However, OSHA, which investigates workplace injuries and issues fines as penalties, has a statute of limitations of six months from an incident to issue citations on previously unreported cases.

Morrow and her mother sued Kiteman, alleging employees weren’t properly trained or supervised and Morrow wasn’t given a helmet. In March, Morrow was awarded $200,000 in settlement money.

The settlement came from both State Farm, which insured the man driving the vehicle during the accident, and underinsured motorists insurer, USAA, according to a judge’s order filed March 25. Sixty thousand dollars went to attorney fees.

Flora said he wanted to stress Disney was not connected to the incident.

“We were doing some testing,” he said. “It was not for the Disney show.”
He’s known Morrow for nearly 30 years, remembering when he hired her to perform at Epcot when was about 19 years old for 1991′s Surprise in the Sky daytime show that ran for a year at the park.
“We love her dearly... We really miss her and wish she could have been a part of the things we were doing,” Flora said. “Mostly we’re just sad this happened and are very sad there wasn’t a more positive way to work through this.”

Flora’s kites that appeared in the Epcot Forever show had a shorter than expected run when the pandemic canceled the special nighttime entertainment.

grusson@orlandosentinel.com

Kite flyer who was injured in 2019 accident dies at age 49
By GABRIELLE RUSSON
ORLANDO SENTINEL |
MAY 18, 2021 AT 2:32 PM

Heather Morrow

Heather Morrow died last week after suffering a brain injury in 2019 when she fell out of a moving vehicle while flying a stunt kite, her family confirmed Tuesday.

Morrow, a Colorado native, was in Orlando and testing the kites in July 2019 when the accident happened at Kiteman Productions, an Orlando-based business that has performed shows in the theme parks.

Morrow was set to perform with Kiteman within a few months for the Epcot Forever nighttime show that debuted in October 2019.

But instead of performing in front of the Disney crowds, Morrow underwent several surgeries and months of rehabilitation to relearn how to walk and regain her motor skills, according to a lawsuit her family later filed against Kiteman. The case was later settled in March for $200,000.

Here are some videos from Heathers life:

https://youtu.be/95VxbRoi96M   Tango to Stin's Shape of my heart
https://youtu.be/DzBP0PGambc  Kiteman Productions Kuwait 50th Celebration
https://fb.watch/5MOvRgml38/
https://youtu.be/0ugyyUYHW1o   Guildworks indoor Kite flying
https://youtu.be/igcedB_-o1M    Crane's story
https://youtu.be/xOLW_AAiohk    Ibex Puppetry's magical Performance

The following is the obituary which ran in the Aspen Times on Friday May 21st, as written by her mother, Joanna, and her family.

Heather Jean Morrow of Aspen, CO made her journey to heaven on May 12, 2021. The presence of her Savior permeated her Denver hospital room and the souls of family and friends around her. She succumbed to a brain injury from a professional kite-flying accident in July 2019. Her 22 months patiently fighting to recover deepened and sweetened her connection with God. Special reassurance came from her reciting 2 Timothy 1:7, Joshua 1:9, Psalm 23 and the Lord’s Prayer. Heather never felt alone with Jesus and her mother faithfully present. Family and friends lifted her in prayer and compassion. She shined with a heart of gratitude and steadfast hope that we all would all get through this together. Her concern for the wellbeing of others never faded. Heather radiated inspirational courage and grace until she was freed from her pain to eternal joy. Her beautiful, remarkable spiritual growth blessed those who experienced it with her after this severe injury.

Heather was born a dancer on April 6, 1972 in Cape May, NJ. Her mother felt her kick to the beat of music. She also started flying stunt kites at 9 years old with her father. Heather graduated from George School (PA) and St. John’s College (NM). Her mother Joanna Belmont resides in Basalt, CO and her father Bob Morrow in Big Pine Key, FL. Her beloved son Luca Morrow-Yeager of Aspen started college with NYU School of Music last year. Close relatives live in PA.

Heather lived life to the fullest. She nurtured lifelong friendships and traveled the world making friends. Kindness and beauty, artistry and adventure embodied her. She aspired to help people connect more deeply. Heather mastered the Argentine Tango and delighted in teaching others to dance. She passionately pursued many interests: Relationship and Personal Coach; Yoga Instructor; International Kite Performer, Puppeteer, Dancer, Choreographer; International Partner Dance Teacher and Performer; Retreat Director and Volunteer Coordinator; Chocolate Maker; Aerial Silk Dancer and various sports. Being a mom to Luca was what Heather loved most of all.

Celebration of life receptions are being planned and communicated by Heather’s friends. In lieu of cards or flowers, see https://gofund.me/26cd83f1 for memorial donation. Family contact: Shantra Rogers (cousin), shantrarogers@gmail.com, 484-880-6477.
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You will be so missed. I will always cherish the support we had for each other raising our kids over the years. You were always positive and driven with your love of life. Rest in Peace, Heather. With sympathy. Pixie and Morgan Witt

It saddens my heart to hear of Heather’s passing however I know she is in a heavenly place enjoying God’s graces.
I met Heather around 10 yrs ago while working several years on and off at the
T Lazy 7 Ranch. I actually met her through her best friend Rebecca . Heather was fun and interesting to be around. Very Worldly
and well traveled sharing stories of her far away adventures. I enjoyed her talking about her dedicated passion for Argentine Tango and Latin Dancing. She was an talented and amazing dancer. I found her to be an excellent dance instructor from the Salsa classes I took from her. She was an Icon in the Roaring Fork Valley know for her dancing talents.
I remember being one the helpers when we moved her into an office/workshop at the ABC to set up her Chocolate Factory.
Her Chocolate was delicious and unique adding additional ingredients such as cayenne for a mouth watering experience.
Heather liked to talk about how she so enjoyed Kite Flying and some of the exotic places she traveled to participate in those events.
My Sincere Condolences to her family and friends. She will truly be missed.
God Bless!
Bill Voytek