Family Of Late Northport Woman Raising Money For Memorial Bench

NORTHPORT, NY — There are few things in life Chloe Lindberg loved more than Long Beach Island (LBI). Lindberg, a Northport resident, spent much of her youth on the small island off the New Jersey coast before her untimely death in January at the age of 26 due to a rare form of leukemia.

Chloe's sister, Remi Lindberg, vowed to herself to never let the world forget her younger sister. She came up with the idea to purchase a memorial bench for Chloe that would be placed on the beach of LBI — specifically, at the end of the dunes of the block the family used to live on.

"A place where Chloe lived some of her most cherished memories," Remi wrote on GoFundMe.

The family is asking for donations to make the bench for Chloe a reality. The Lindbergs raised $1,050 as of Thursday morning. The financial breakdown lists $400 for the bench, up to $450 for engraving, and $150 for shipping. Donations exceeding the $1,000 total will be donated to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in Chloe’s name and honor, Remi said.

A link to the Lindbergs' GoFundMe page is here.

"Through the creation and existence of this memorial bench, Chloe will be remembered particularly in a place she loved very much," Remi said. "Her memory will be kept alive in an atmosphere that she cherished. Her essence will be back in the place that she yearned to be."

Chloe was diagnosed in December 2019 at the age of 25 and battled for 13 months. Her will to live shocked many doctors, according to Remi.

"I was often met with curious and awestruck minds," Remi said. "Minds that could easily understand very complex chromosomal abnormalities yet couldn't comprehend how a young girl who was barely 90 pounds, paralyzed from her neck to feet and with every inch of her bone marrow filled to the brim with cells bred to kill could not only simply still be living but still remain with an untouched desire for life."

Remi believes Chloe's ability to keep fighting stemmed from her love of living and visions of her future. Many of those visions were centered around LBI, Remi said.

"A wide-brimmed hat protecting her now healthy head, her perfectly curated music playlist and crashing waves vibrating in her now healthy ears, sand beneath her now healthy feet and the sun basking upon her now healthy body," Remi said. "A large collection of adolescent memories there only strengthening those fantasies making it all the more vivid for her (a majority of her life considering how short her life was)."

Chloe's desire to return to the beach she loved so much provided her extra, valuable seconds of life, Remi said. It's only fitting that a memorial bench be stationed there in Chloe's honor, and it seems it will soon be a reality.

"Her memory will be kept alive in an atmosphere that she cherished," Remi said. "Her essence will be back in the place that she yearned to be."

The GoFundMe will be kept open through Aug. 29, 2021 — what would have been Chloe's 27th birthday.