| As many of you know by now, my precious Momma passed away on Tuesday, May 25th. I will speak more of her later in the NEWSLETTER. MAIL CALL from Debbie Borres Desmond
in from Vicki Brunow
in La Veta, CO from Robbie Greig
in from Glenn McGee
in from Jeanette
Constantine
in Groves from Keith Tamplin
(actually his new wife wrote in) in Huxley, TX from Cherlyn Hebert
in Houston from Diane Richmond
Miller
in Silsbee ********************************************************************** NEWS FROM THE HOMEFRONT To answer a couple of classmates' inquiries about the lack of this section in the last two NEWSLETTER editions, I will say that my MOM was immensely improving and was feeling so much stronger that I didn't have a lot to say about them. That is why finding her dead in her bed on Tuesday morning, May 25th, was a shock. I went to visit for the day and noticed that Dad was watching tv by himself. He said that Mom was "sleeping in". I peeped around the corner and noticed that she "seemed" to be doing just that. For the next 30 minutes, I visited with Dad and fixed their medications for the week. I checked on her again, this time going to the other side of the bed where she was facing the wall and that is when I found that she had died during the night. My siblings and I had always wondered what Dad would do if he ever found her deceased. Would he know to go next door? We knew he couldn't call anyone since he doesn't know to dial the phone. Mom's prayers were answered. She NEVER wanted to get diabetes like her other siblings and parents. She had a horror of having to be put in a nursing home. She worried that she might be in a hospital with life support and hear us tell the doctors to unplug the wires. She also worried about what would happen to Dad. How were we going to take care of him? Well, he lives with me during the week and my sister on the weekends. We will try this and see how it plays out. All those worries for YEARS for naught! She told me the week before she died that she hoped, when the time came, that she would pass away in her sleep like her Mom did. Finally, her prayers were answered. Rest in Peace, Mom. (Many of you have mentioned how you felt like you knew my parents by reading about them in this section. Thank you for all the kind words.) *********************************************************************** Tribute to Mom from her Children (written and read by me at the funeral) I hope that this tribute will let Mom's grandchildren and great-grandchildren learn more about her life and why we love her so much. How do we start a tribute to our mother? She was our first teacher, our conscience, our heart! Mom had a very hard childhood. She was the baby of 6 children and the family moved often, (or as she would say, "when the rent was due"). Her mother abandoned them when our mom was only 4 years old. Soon after, a step-mother entered the picture and her life seemed to take a turn for the worse, if that was possible. Her older siblings were her guardian angels and she never forgot it. They helped guide her and loved her when she really needed a mother's love. She took house cleaning jobs and was forced to quit school before she graduated to help with expenses. This was what she told us was her biggest regret in life. June, 1938....Mom's 16th birthday party given by friends. Across the room....22 year old Prince Charming spots her and announces to his friends standing nearby, "Hands off. That one is mine!" and the rest is history! Obviously, the attraction must have been mutual because two years later in 1940, our parents married at St. Mary's Catholic Church while one of the attendees was overheard to say, "It won't last!" Seems that they proved her wrong since the union lasted for 69 1/2 years. They were blessed with three children over the next 10 years. Growing up, our "stay-at-home" mom cooked, cleaned, took in ironings for extra income, and sewed our clothes. She was a hard worker. In the course of one school day, she was known to move all the furniture in a bedroom, paint the walls, hang the pictures back up, and move the furniture back before we returned home. She cleaned endless ducks, cooked gumbo, and made sure we went to Catechism, Saturday confession, and weekly mass at St. Joseph. After we graduated from high school, Mom began to spread her wings and join the workforce. She worked at Three Sisters, Gibsons, and her favorite....in the shoe department at Dryden's. This extra income also helped during the strikes at Gulf Oil every two years. Rice, rice, and more rice! After Dad's retirement in 1980, Mom also retired and started volunteering as a Pink Lady at St. Mary's and at the Hospitality House. She and Dad joined the "spa" and also the YMCA where they met many dear friends. Mom wasn't always a chipper person, though. She kinda had that "half empty glass" attitude. She was also a chronic WORRIER! If something was wrong, we didn't have to waste our time worrying about it. She worried enough for all of us. In fact, we called her a "What if'er". "What if it rains next Sunday when we are in church and we forgot our umbrella?" "What if a hurricane is in the Gulf and we have to evacuate and you are out of town?" (Of course, she had a right to that one since it really happened. But, that's another story.) Mom had another character "flaw". She was a big-time Penny Pincher! She was known to make a return trip to a grocery store five miles away that over-charged her 3 cents on the milk. But, she would just say she wasn't cheap, just frugal. We called her "tight"! She always came back with the retort, "I was raised in the Depression." We then would remind her that she wasn't raised with air conditioning but she used it now. But, when it came to sharing or helping out one of us when in need, get out of her way. She never hesitated. Over the course of the years, Mom became "another mother" to many of her nieces and nephews. They loved her dearly and trusted her. Of course, their problems gave her some more worries! She continued to visit and call them until the day she died. Our mother wasn't all gloom and doom. Not by a long shot. She had some great times over the years. Going dancing on Saturday nights was a big treat for her and Dad and their friends. They often came over after the dance and had a big gumbo. Some of her other pastimes included cooking, sewing, baking cakes, playing cards, (especially Solitare), reading until all hours of the night, watching the Astros baseball games, traveling to Louisiana to spend time with relatives, and of course rooting for the Dallas Cowboys! Another big event for her and Dad was going to the casinos. In fact, for her 85th birthday she requested a trip to Las Vegas. They had not been there since 1974. Boy, had things changed. Mom liked to collect plates to hang on the wall, loved beautiful figurines and what-nots. She covered all the walls with family pictures and planted roses and day lilies in the flower beds with help from Dad, of course. But, what brought her the most pleasure and hours of enjoyment over her life-time was rereading the greeting card collection that she began in 1940. Yes, she saved EVERY one of them that she received for 70 years. In fact, for a surprise, we sent out secret letters to friends and family members requesting a card shower for her 85th birthday in 2007. She received 107 birthday greeting cards! The postman didn't know what hit him. Mom's heart stopped beating for the last time the morning of May 25th, 2010 but she began to die in body and spirit beginning in July, 2007. That is when she began to have major health issues. Because of this and Dad's dementia, we moved our parents from their beloved home in Lakeview and had them move to Bridge City to be near at least two of their children. Feeling dependent for the first time took a toll on her spirit. In the next three years, they moved five times, endured two major hurricanes with extended evacuations, and lost all their possessions in 6 foot of saltwater due to Hurricane Ike. Age and increased ill health, (both mentally and physically), helped to draw our parents closer together. They became more of a team since each needed the other for daily chores. They were never apart in the last few months. Dad checked on Mom constantly and when she was feeling poorly and needed to take a nap, he would feel her head to see if it was hot, "checking for fever", he said. Mom's heart might have stopped but she has taught us heart! She taught us by example to respect others and especially ourselves, to try to reach higher and use hard, honest work to get there. She taught us to honor our family and friends. She wasn't impressed by wealth or fame but wanted us to strive to be better and enjoy life as it came at us. Her pleasure was when she would hear about our vacations or get-aways. She felt like we needed the rest away from worries. (Remember, she would take over the worrying for us!) At the end of her earthly life, her thoughts were always about us and our families, and above all, her spouse, her Prince Charming of 69 1/2 years! You did a good job, Momma. We thank you for being the best role model that we could ever ask for. We love you. God gave us the best when he chose you for us. But, as Dad said, as he patted your cold lifeless hand the day your heart gave out, "You left too soon! You left too soon!" He is right. Not 87 years, not even 187 years. We all still need Mothers in our lives. They are our hearts. Love you more than you can ever know, *********************************************************************** SUPPORT Gail Wilson's husband will be returning to Afganistan soon. He is undergoing more combat training. His address at this time to show him our support and appreciation is: Lt. Col Felker, Ross
Gail could use your support, also. Here is her address: Gail Wilson Felker
from Jeanette
Constantine Morgan
in
Groves Jeanette Constantine Morgan (update from Linda Carlsen
Chapman
concerning
her husband's health) Linda and Harold Chapman In all my craziness and forgetfulness during the last trying week, I have forgotten some information that was passed along to me at Mom's wake service. One of my classmates, can't remember who at this point, told me about someone they wanted me to add to the SUPPORT list. I think it was her "brother". Please forgive me, but you will need to contact me with this information AGAIN and I will include it in the next edition. I do apologize. *********************************************************************** CONDOLENCES
James Hubert (death of his mother) I received the following note from
Gary Hammond
:
Linda DeCuir McFadden
I added my "new" address since I have been getting cards delivered to my old "evacuation address". Thank you so much for the support given to me and my whole family. *********************************************************************** The last few days have been exhausting. I am not telling you anything that many of you don't know. So many classmates have gone through this process and, of course now I can understand it first hand. I wish I didn't. Thanks for all the phone calls, visits to the services, food, flowers and plants, cards, and above all.....HUGS! The support shown have helped me through this sad time. By helping relieve some of my stress, you have helped me console my dad. His many sentences have been, "Why didn't she wait for me?", "Why did she want to leave?", "I thought I would be the one to go first.", etc. His thing now is, "If I become too much trouble, I want you to put me in an OLD FOLKS HOME." Pretty hard on a 94 year old. Actually, pretty hard on the 60 year old, too! Happy 88th Birthday June 6, Momma. I'm sure heaven will throw a big bash for you and James' mom arriving on the SAME DAY ! Two of his newest angels!!!
Stay in touch and contact a classmate, |
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