Obituary of Tia Lynn Fernandez

Tia Lynn Fernandez passed away at home on September 4, 2013.  She will be fondly remembered by many for her compassionate spirit, her laughter, her charisma, and her love of adventure.   Tia was born on September 18, 1977 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  She lived in Ohio, Colorado, Belgium, and New Jersey.  Tia had a lifelong passion for children, travel, photography, and psychology.  Most of all, she loved new experiences, and her life was filled with many of them.   Tia brought light, love, and joy to all that she touched.   Tia is survived by her mother Karan Richardson and stepfather David, her father Fern Fernandez and stepmother Barb, her sisters Gala, Charlotte, Jessica, and Kyah, her brothers Kenneth and Chris, her fiancé Ture, and nieces/nephews Brooke, Juliana, Andrew, Miles, Courtney, Xander, Kaschner, and special young friends Rhian and Lincoln.   Services for Tia will be held at 10:00 am on Monday, September 9, 2013, at Bailey Funeral Home, 176 Main Street, Peapack, NJ.  Friends and family may also attend visitation hours at Bailey Funeral Home on Saturday, September 7 from 5:00 to 7:00 pm, and on Sunday, September 8 from 1:00 to 5:00 pm.   Tia's special love for children inspired her to strongly support a charity devoted to helping children afflicted with cleft palates – the Smile Train.  In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Smile Train as a tribute to Tia's own very special smile.