Jen's Story
Be strong and courageous
Jen lived her entire life with cystic fibrosis. However, she did not let her disease stop her from accomplishing remarkable things in life nor did she let it define her. She ran several half marathons, walked a full marathon, ran an 18-mile trail run in Death Valley, rode several CF Rides (including one for 35 miles), and hiked multiple trails. She loved to fish, kayak, and shoot guns. She was an archer. She followed her husband, a local Ironman triathlete, to all of his events and cheered him on. She is also remembered for her kind and loving heart and passion for God. She always accomplished things in life to glorify God and honor Him and her husband.
Her impact on the Coeur d’Alene community got noticed while working at the Union Gospel Mission as the volunteer coordinator and being active at Coeur d’Alene Bible Church.
In February 2019, the couple relocated to Chapel Hill, NC, to begin the lung transplant waitlist process. On May 23, she received her new lungs and was able to breathe clearly and fully for the first time in her life. However, complications related to her cystic fibrosis took a toll on other organ systems and she was unable to recover from it. Jen McKenna passed away on June 27, 2019, from cystic fibrosis-related complications. She was 41 years old.
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Proceeds from the event will be donated to All Heart Infusion of Spokane and Coeur d'Alene.
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