On March 27, 2010, Eva Markvoort, 25, former Miss New Westminster and University of Victoria theatre student lost her battle with Cystic Fibrosis.

While she was battling with the rare genetic disease that causes mucus to accumulate in the lungs, Markvoort fearlessly took up blogging to share her last few days with the world.

“Hello to the world at large…To my blog, to my friends, to everyone. I have some news today. It’s kinda tough to hear, but I can say it with a smile…My life is ending.” (Death at 25: Blogging the end of a life, CNN).

1. 
   cynthiana “This is the end of my life, but it’s not the end of my love,” from Eva Markvoort’s blog near the end of her life. Amazing quote. 27 Apr 2010 from web
2. 
   JohnAkerson http://bit.ly/crc5Gu Sad passing of Eva Markvoort. So many people with so much LIFE … live such short lives. R.I.P. 27 Apr 2010 from TweetDeck
3. 
   Rai_Samit Blogging the end of a life http://bit.ly/ay8jod She made the most of the hand she was dealt R.I.P. #Eva #Markvoort 27 Apr 2010 from Tweetie
4. 
   BIAbooks “My life is ending.” Eva Markvoort’s blog detailed her struggle w/cystic fibrosis. Remarkable, valiant, moving, sad. http://bit.ly/95WpH6 27 Apr 2010 from web
5. 
   jrvfaldas Eva Markvoort a.k.a. 65_RedRoses. Her funeral is today. Saw her documentary. Such Courage. There are 65 red roses waiting for her in heaven. 30 Apr 2010 from Echofon
6. 
   Julianna2221 Just read such an inspiring story about a woman named Eva Markvoort. Look it up on U tube. Never take anything for granted ! RIP ANGEL 30 Apr 2010 from web
7. 
   jennifersteck Eva Markvoort died two days ago from cystic fibrosis. Have you signed your organ donation card yet? http://65redroses.livejournal.com/ 30 Apr 2010 from web
8. 
   beccasaurusroar I work at the theatre that held Eva Markvoort’s memorial. What an inspiring and beautiful soul. I’ve never cried so much at work. 01 May 2010 from txt
9. 
   10thToTheFraser Eva Markvoort’s courage in the face of death inspires 65 Red Roses artist fundraiser http://bit.ly/9tlkho 04 May 2010 from Facebook

Markvoort had an unsuccessful double lung transplant in 2007, when her body rejected the donated organs. She passed away, awaiting a second donation. Through her blog, 65_REDROSES, Markvoort became a cystic fibrosis campaigner, encouraging organ donors to support others like her.

Her blog won many hearts, including the 2010 Summerhayes award presented to her on behalf of the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation at the Vancouver General Hospital.

The blog’s name 65_REDROSES was influenced by her childhood memories, where she used to mispronounce “cystic fibrosis” as “65 roses”.

Her documentary, 65_RedRoses directed by Vancouver filmmakers Nimisha Mukerji and Philip Lyall won three awards at the 2009 Vancouver International Film Festival.

Two weeks before she died, Markvoort was awarded a bachelor’s degree from the University of Victoria.

She believed in love and celebrated it for as long as she could.

Eva Markvoort lives today in the hearts of her supporters who continue to gain strength from her work, and her words.

Markvoort blog post, more than finite, January 10, 2010:

“There are moments when i can step back from myself,
evaluate and realize that i am so blissfully happy,
so full of love and sheer goodness, the good times far outweighing the bad these days.”

Blog post: hope on the line, 65_RedRoses

The Associated Press is trying something it’s never tried before with its coverage of the Sonia Sotomayor hearings.

It’s providing round-the-clock tweets at @AP_Courtside, documenting every move of the hearings, allowing the general public easy access to some of AP’s best talent, and using feedback to direct the coverage itself. And that’s not all.

The Twitter coverage is supplemented by a partnership with Yahoo News, where an extensive blog and collection of related articles is prominently featured on that Web site.

While the AP has embraced Twitter before, never before has it conducted anything of this magnitude in terms of crowdsourcing on a major story, says Gida Hammami of Editors Weblog.

I spoke with Ted Anthony, a national writer/editor for the AP and former foreign correspondent, who is supervising the ongoing Sotomayor Project.

What was the main idea behind it?

“We wanted to conduct an experiment and look at whether we could build community around news content,” he said. “It’s a short-term experiment, not a prototype or anything, but we also wanted to bring in our newspapers and increase discussion.”

Anthony said of Twitter, “It’s becoming a major force in the way people are communicating with each other.” He added that AP wanted to use it “not just because of its increasing relevance to the journalism world, but also the immediate flavor of it.”

A team of eight people is working together on the Sotomayor experiment, including seasoned political reporters, a social media expert, regional news director, and the Washington Bureau Chief himself.

“It’s true that the mainstream media and particularly AP don’t have a lot of experience dipping into the toes of readers, but we’re finding a pool of people who very much want to interact,” Anthony said.

He said not only are they collecting opinions about the story and the coverage itself, but the AP is interested in creating lively conversations between the public and journalists. It’s asked readers for the parts of the story they’re most interested in and tries at every opportunity to send reporters out to dig in.

Anthony said the group has already learned some interesting things.

“I am very delighted with the level of discourse,” he said. “Certainly, there’s skeptics and any experiment should have that, but people for the most part have been very engaging.”

“What’s becoming obvious is people very much want to have a stake in the news and how it’s covered,” he said.

For those critical of Twitter and its limitations, Anthony welcomed the criticism, but he also said he feels the negatives can be overcome:

“People may complain about these new technologies, and say it goes against depth, but we’ve proven with this experiment that if we have good reliable info, even in fragments, we assemble a picture at the end of the day that has relevance and context.”