Cristian Randall Cherrison
October 16, 1971 - August 03, 2011
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Cristian Randall Cherrison
October 16, 1971 - August 03, 2011
Obituary
Cristian ‘Kip’ Randall Cherrison
October 16, 1971 – August 3, 2011
39 Years Young
Cristian ‘Kip’ Cherrison was born in La Mirada, California to Larry and Sheryl Cherrison. During his early childhood, the family moved to Whidbey Island, Washington, and again to Montana and Houston, Texas and then the family established in Redding, California in 1982. There he attended Liberty Christian High School and went on to attend Christian Heritage College San Diego, Simpson College Redding and then attended Nyack Christian College in Nyack, New York on a basketball scholarship.
After college, Kip moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado for a short while and then back to Redding, where he adopted his best friend and golden retriever, ‘Creep’, in 1997.
In Redding, Kip worked as a mentor and counselor for high-risk youth and excelled in the field of sales. He moved to Seattle, Washington in 2001 where he owned his own ecological exterior home care business. He met his wife, Laura Rose Peterson in the Cascade Mountains at Snoqualmie Pass, where he lived and worked for the Summit at Snoqualmie ski resort selling ski and recreation packages to college campuses and various groups.
In 2009, Cristian and Laura moved to Southern California living in Los Angeles, where he worked as a systems design and sales representative with Acro Energy Solar. The couple married during the sixth year of their true love and friendship on 10/10/10. They moved to their home in Mt. Baldy, California where Cristian worked in various sales, volunteering at the Mt. Baldy ski lifts out of his purehearted love for snowboarding, the wilderness and the mountains. In February 2011, he was hired by the prestigious Real Goods Solar Company where he was named top salesman of the month in July 2011.
Throughout his life Kip enjoyed basketball, snowboarding, reading, camping, wakeboarding, fishing and laughing with his friends and family. Wherever he went, people were drawn to him to experience his ever loyal friendship and pure goodness.
Cristian was a man blessed with extraordinary attributes, who strived to live a life of excellence. He was generous, loyal, witty, forgiving, tenderhearted, hard working, kind, and caring every day of his life. He was always available to his family and friends. His legacy will be the true loyalty, respect and love that he left with every person he knew. His dream was to travel with Laura through Mexico and Central America in their little motor home named ‘La Pepita’.to find adventure, learn the language and to raise a child who would be born with dual citizenship and be bilingual. Some of Kip’s clothing will be donated to a missions outreach in Mexico, fulfilling that part of his dream.
He is survived by his wife, Laura; his parents, Larry and Sheryl; his sisters Charity Rachel and Shannan; and his older brother, Eric and his sister-in-law, Barbie Cherrison. He is also survived by his grandmother, Joyce Danielson; three uncles: Jerry Womack, Randy Womack and Randy Cherrison; and 5 nephews, Jacob, Daniel, Tyler, Noah and JJ. Astonishingly, he is survived by his 15 year old beloved dog and sidekick, Creep.
A celebration of Cristian’s life will be held in Lake Shasta, California just north of Redding where he grew up. The celebration will be at the park at Shasta Dam on August 22, 2011 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Friends and family are invited to bring stories to share. Please write your story on a piece of paper to be gathered into a memorial album that will be shared with future generations of the family.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to either of two organizations that were dear to Cristian’s heart. His most cherished days were where his basketball days started, where God touched his life and where friends from those days remained ever close; or the California Wilderness Coalition which preserves the wilderness areas of California where Cristian loved hiking, camping and fishing:
Liberty Christian Basketball
Attention: Coach Todd Franklin
Memo: ‘Remembering Kip’
3782 Churn Creek Road
Redding, CA 96002
California Wilderness Coalition
Memo: In honor of Cristian Cherrison
P. O. Box 993323
Redding, CA 96099
27 responses to Cristian Randall Cherrison
Laura Rose Peterson says:
August 9, 2011
It is so hard to write this. The letters and these tiny words staring back at me from a white screen seem so insufficient, so devoid of life. They are just a reminder of the loss all of us feel so acutely.
They say ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Matter is never created nor destroyed, and energy manifests itself in vastly different forms, and then shapeshifts before our eyes. Our Earth suits grow old and fade away and all the while beautiful babies are born. It’s not the first time that I met Cristian, and it won’t be the last. We are the reincarnation of our ancestors and will be reincarnated in our progeny. I will see my soulmate again.
If you knew him, you knew his smile and his giggle. You knew the sound of his medium-sized laugh and you knew his deepdown-loud belly laugh. You knew his dimples. You knew his chipped tooth, and his beanpoleness, and his great hair. You knew, beyond question, his witty rapport, his agreeable charm, and his charisma. You knew his generosity and his deep desire to make other people happy. You may or may not have known his struggles. But the thing you knew most, was how much he loved you.
I cry myself to sleep every night, but if there’s one thing I know, it’s how much he loved me, and I him. If there’s one thing I know, it’s how much he loved all of you, and you him.
Christopher Rhea says:
August 10, 2011
I appreciate all that ”kip” was for me through high school, He was a true friend when needed. I will miss ”Kip”, myprayers our with his family.
Joe Snyder says:
August 12, 2011
I first met Kip when we used to attend his Father & Mother’s church Faith Alive in Redding,Ca.
Kip was a little boy when I first met him and I see that he has grown into a nice Christian man who is loved by all.
Most of my memories were with his mom & dad, Larry & Sheryl because I worked with them in the ministry at Faith Alive; but I knew Kip was there along with Shannan & Charity. Betty and I will miss Kip but we know that we will see him again walking on those Gold Streets of Heaven.
So long Kip until we meet again. Love & condolences to all of the Cherrison Family
Joni Womack says:
August 12, 2011
I will truly miss you Kip, you were a fine young man.
Nicola & John Tomasini says:
August 12, 2011
At a time like this words cannot always fully express what we would like to say. Maybe these words from a card that we once saw will bring a little comfort. “A rose has bloomed in heaven, its fragrance fills the air – it grows in God’s own garden, it’s nurtured by His care… A rose has bloomed in heaven – and whenever loved ones part, they blossom forth in memories in the gardens of the heart”. We love you and know that you are in our prayers.
Love, Nicola & John