Kimberley Jane Dark (nee Collins)

May  12th, 1980 March  30th, 2020
Christchurch, New Zealand
Kimberley Jane Dark (nee Collins)

If you enter this world knowing you are loved and you leave this world knowing the same, then everything that happens in between can be dealt with.

(Michael Jackson)

Obituary

DARK, Kimberley Jane (KJ): On March 30, 2020, we said goodbye to our amazing daughter, sister, wife, granddaughter, niece, cousin and friend to so many.  KJ you have put up an amazing fight, you never gave up and you taught us all so much about acceptance and unconditional love.  Your feisty and fun loving, joke playing spirit will be remembered forever.  "Safe travels our gorgeous girl"  We never imagined that we wouldn't be able to have a Funeral Service to farewell KJ, but due to the current circumstances this just isn't possible.  We will be holding a Memorial Service to celebrate KJ and will advise the details at a later date.

Published in The Press on Apr. 1, 2020.


      At the age of 21, KJ was diagnosed with Huntington's Disease (HD).  HD is a rare, inherited, neuro-degenerative disorder and each  child of an affected parent has a 50% chance of inheriting the disease.
      HD affects all parts of the brain, eventually leads to death, and currently there is no cure.  The age of onset of symptoms, and the rate of disease progression depends on the CAG repeat count (the number of times that the defective gene is repeated within each strand of DNA).  KJ's repeat count was 54, her first notable, physical symptoms occurred at age 22 and she passed away at age 39.
      While there is a wide range of symptoms that can affect each person, KJ predominantly had those which affected her movements, balance, thinking and reasoning.  Towards the end of her life, KJ was totally dependent on others to do even the simplest things.

Timeline

1980
May 12th
Born
Born at Christchurch Women's Hospital weighing 6lb 1oz
1985
January
Hoon Hay Primary School
1988
November 17th
Big Sister
Became a big sister, after much anticipation, to Kathryn (Katie) Samantha.
1993
January
Lincoln High School
1996
January
Villa Maria College
Transferred to VMC in the 6th form and earned the top award for religious education.
2005
Travelled to England for O.E.
2006
February 25th
Married
Married to Justin at Gethsemane Gardens, Sumner
2014
July
Sister-in-law
Became sister-in-law to Nick and loved him so much that she fondly named a toy green monkey "Nick Seizure" after him, and also thoroughly enjoyed teasing him by pretending to have seizures.

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Memory wall

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March 29, 2024
It’s beautiful Katie nana.. what an amazing tribute to an incredible 🐀
Charlotte Basher

Family tree

Gordon Collins
Lilly Collins (nee Maloney)
Ronald Williams
Shirley Williams (nee Rule)
David Collins
Dianne Collins (nee Williams)
Justin Dark
Katie Collins
Nick Collins (nee Alsop)
Katie Collins
Nick Collins (nee Alsop)
Justin Dark
Kimberley Dark (nee Collins)

Favorites


What was Kimberley's favorite Drink?
Baileys
What was Kimberley's favorite Sports Team?
Crusaders
What was Kimberley's favorite Color?
Purple & Green
What was Kimberley's favorite Sport?
Loved all sports, but particularly softball
What was Kimberley's favorite Book?
Anything written by Jodi Picoult
What was Kimberley's favorite Music / Song?
Loved all music, spanning many genres and eras 
What cause was important to Kimberley?
The Brain Bank and Centre for Brain Research
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