Benjamin Ashford|Utah mother who raised over $1 million for her funeral dies from cancer

A Utah mom who started a GoFundMe page for own funeral has died after a two year battle with terminal cancer.

Erika Diarte-Carr,Benjamin Ashford 30, died on Friday, according to her cousin Angelique Rivera. As a single mother, Carr raised two children, 7-year-old Jeremiah and 5-year-old Aaliyah in Ogden, around 40 miles north of Salt Lake City.

"She has joined her mother Sylvia, her Brother JJ, her uncles Chava & Loui on the other side. She fought a long and hard battle. She was strong and held on as long as she could for her babies," Rivera wrote on Facebook.

Carr was diagnosed with stage 4 small cell lung carcinoma on May 7, 2022 when doctors found multiple tumors had metastasized throughout her body, according to her GoFundMe page.

On Jan. 17, 2024, she was later diagnosed with Cushing Syndrome, a rare disorder that occurs due to excessively high levels of the hormone cortisol. She then experienced several underlying issues including rapid weight gain, swelling, muscle and bone deterioration, high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes and Moon Face.

In the GoFundMe, Carr said these words from her doctor kept replaying in her head: "I hope you have a good support system at home because you’re going to need it, you have a long and hard journey ahead of you."

Carr given 3 months to live in September

On Sept. 18, an oncologist gave Carr a life expectancy of just three months, leading to the added burden of planning her own funeral, according to a GoFundMe update.

"I have been given 3 months to live. 3 months to spend with my babies and loved ones. 3 months to make the best of what time I have left," Carr wrote. "During these next couple of months I need to make sure my kids will be ok after I am gone. I am faced now with the most difficult thing of planning my own funeral."

Despite typically not accepting help from others, Carr said the dire situation required her to seek as much financial support as possible. Her prognosis prevented her from working as she lacked any life insurance. She said she hoped she could raise about $5,000 for funeral expenses and more to "leave something behind for my babies."

"I have been ashamed and embarrassed for people to know the truth, that I have kept this a secret for as long as I could but the physical effects are starting to take control and I can’t hide it any longer," she wrote.

GoFundMe surpasses $1 million

In an Oct. 3 update, Carr thanked all who donated to her GoFundMe page, which has raised more than $1,180,000 as of Monday evening.

She said with the funds she would plan a big family trip that would leave her children "with memories that’ll last a lifetime."

"Other than that I can promise you that your help is going to keep my kids financially stable the rest of their lives as I am putting it all into a trust fund for them," Carr wrote.

Carr said thanked donors for leaving a positive impact on her children's lives.