From the porch
Recent lights from the porch
Real words from real people. Step onto the porch and walk among them.
A light on the porch
He was my favorite person. That is what I will always tell you about my dad. He saw me in a way I have not found anywhere else. He learned every horse show course alongside me. He…
A light on the porch
I never had the chance to meet Brittany. I came into Carrie's life after she was already gone. But I have heard about her every day since. I have watched what her loss does to my…
A light on the porch
Brittany was the best human there was. I mean that simply and completely. Caring, loving, selfless in a way that was just who she was, not something she worked at. She was a model…
Our why
Why we built this.
On October 2, 2009,
we lost Brittany Marie Petrocca at 14 years old.
She was the kind of person who made every room feel warmer. Who would stand up from the “popular kids” table and walk across the cafeteria to sit with someone eating alone. Who would climb onto a park bench next to a stranger just to make sure he felt seen. She wore her heart on her sleeve. She put everyone else first. And she used to say: “Be the reason someone smiles today.”
That was Brittany. Her light expanded beyond her physical body. And we have been carrying it ever since.
In the years since we lost her, our family has not stopped showing up. We have walked the AFSP Out of the Darkness walks. We have raised over $360,000 in her name. We built the Blue Angel Car Show because a powder blue Thunderbird she never got to drive became the symbol of everything she was and everything she never got to be.
The Keep the Light On Project is the next chapter. A community for the people still here. The ones fighting. The ones grieving. The ones who just need to know that somewhere, someone left a light on for them tonight.
You found the porch
Where are you tonight?
No wrong answer. We built this for all of it.
Team Brittany
The Blue Angel Car Show
Every year, Team Brittany gathers at the Blue Angel Car Show: hundreds of cars, families, and friends coming together to raise money for AFSP and remind each other that nobody grieves alone. The show is named for a powder blue Thunderbird that Brittany used to watch from the porch every day after school. She said the color matched her eyes. Phil found that exact car ten years later. The rest became something none of us could have planned.
Upcoming
Where we're showing up next.
Stay close
We’ll leave the porch light on for you.
Quiet notes when there’s news worth carrying. Events, milestones, and new letters from The Porch. Nothing else.