Eulogy

Eulogy and Obituary for Arden E. Tuttle

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Eulogy for Arden E. Tuttle

July 28, 2018

by Pastor John Partridge

 

I never had the chance to meet Arden Tuttle.

As I met with Arden’s family last week, I had never met any of them either.  And so, I asked them to tell me stories.  I asked a lot of questions because I wanted to know who she was beyond what we read in the obituary pages.  Not that her obituary is wrong, but only that, sort of by necessity, they tend to be a little dry two dimensional.  Instead, I wanted to know what it was like to know her, to be her friend, or her family, to live with her, or to live life alongside of her.

And what I found out was that anyone who wanted to be a part of Arden’s life had better be ready to run to keep up.  Sitting still, or at least sitting idle, didn’t suit her.  Arden was always busy doing something.

Arden Davis was born on the 4th of July in 1930, in Warren, Ohio and as far as I can tell, that’s about the only time that she wasn’t living life at a dead run, doing things for others, having adventures, trying new things, teaching others, and encouraging the rest of her friends and family to try to keep up.  In 1948, while attending Mount Union, she had 14 dates the first week, and Ward (Bud) was one of them.  But although she was the center of attention and had plenty of men competing for her attention, Bud was the one, and she took the bull by the horns and told him that she loved him.  Maybe it was because rather than trying to impress her, Bud had spent their time together teaching her how to play bridge.  Before long they were married, Bud was inducted into the Army during the Korean Conflict, and Arden was by his side as he went to training and then stationed in Indiana.  Throughout their adventures together, to Bud always referred to Arden as his “Little Rabbit” or just as “kiddo.”

As her family listed all the things that she had done, and all the clubs or organizations to which she had belonged, they started with the list in the obituary and just kept adding things to it as our conversation caused them to remember more.  Arden was active on lots of boards, she served in some capacity, wherever they lived, in every church to which they belonged.  Arden just couldn’t stay at home.  She didn’t much care for cooking or cleaning, or any kind of “domestic stuff,” but she did like gardening.  She also tried her hand at flower arranging and joined a group to learn how to do that, but her family doesn’t recall very many flowers ever making it home.

Arden was a life-long learner.  She loved education, travel, knowledge, and reading.  She never met a book she didn’t like, and books always seemed to find their way home with her.  They came home from the library book sale, and the book of the month club, and from her book club in town, and from anywhere else that she might meet one.  And she read them all.  She loved teaching.  And when she retired from teaching, she re-invented herself and learned how to be a financial planner and she was proud of that accomplishment, but she couldn’t really stop teaching.  She took the time, in her retirement, to go back to school and read to kindergarten kids.   But then she re-invented herself again some years later when she became the owner of her own travel agency.  And that’s just a start.  Did I mention that she also owned a pre-school?

Arden was always ready to try new things and go to new places.  Her passion for travelling took her to all 50 states and 103 countries (London was far and away her favorite. She visited there 15 times!) Bud was with her every step of the way and her children just grew up travelling.  When it was time for a vacation they were in the car by 6:00 am and on the road.  Later, she planned trips for senior citizens to Cleveland, and anywhere that she could find to learn and explore.

Arden was the tomboy, the redhead, she described herself as “short but feisty,” and she was fearless.  As a Girls Scout leader, she and her girls were out camping during the time when there were reports that Bigfoot had been seen in the area, possibly what is still referred to as the “Minerva Monster.  While they were in the woods, they cooked, camped, and hiked, and one night all the girls were in a panic because some of them thought they had seen Bigfoot near their camp.  And so, Arden, without hesitation, marches off into the woods to see Bigfoot for herself.  Arden had a reputation.  If you needed something done, she was the one who made things happen.

Arden always enjoyed playing games.  She loved bridge from the moment that Bud taught her to play, and she loved card games and board games of all sorts, but she did not like Monopoly and she was not a sports fan.

This was a woman who really liked people.  She could, and did, make friends while standing in line, and one reason was almost certainly because she was always genuinely interested in their lives.  But just the same, she was a woman who spoke her mind, and wasn’t afraid to be aggressive when she felt she needed to, or when someone was doing something that she didn’t like.  Her family and friends knew her to be a good listener, and a person with whom you could share your problems without being judged.  As a mother of four children, she had a relaxed parenting style that allowed her kids to explore their own interests but, at the same time, she advocated and pushed for them to develop intellectually.  As they became adults, Arden simply enjoyed being able to have adult conversations with her children.  As a grandparent, while she loved on her grandchildren, but she wasn’t afraid to be critical of how her children parented them.

So how should we remember Arden Tuttle?

I’m pretty sure that if she knew you were sitting around moping, or spending too much time mourning her, she would give you an earful.  Instead, I think the best way that you can remember her is to follow her example.  Remember that life is an adventure. Don’t just sit still.  Try new things.  Do what you love. Read, explore, see the world, expand your horizons, and have fun doing it.

Arden did all these things, and she would want you to get out of your chair, get out of the house, and do the same.

 

 Obituary for Arden E. Tuttle

Arden TuttleArden E. Tuttle, age 88, of Alliance, passed away at 8:56 p.m., Wednesday, July 18, 2018, at Alliance Community Hospital.

She was born July 4, 1930, in Warren, Ohio, to Paul and Ruth (Gledhill) Davis.

Arden was formerly an elementary school teacher in Alliance, Canton and Newark Public Schools. She was also formerly employed as an insurance sales person with Metropolitan Insurance sales, certified financial planner with I.D.S. American Express, and former owner of the Lake Cable Travel Agency, and an Avon Sales lady.

She loved being a parent, grandparent, and travelling, visiting six continents, 103 countries and all 50 states. She also enjoyed being a teacher, Girl Scout leader and bridge player.

Arden was a member of the Christ United Methodist Church and a former member of the Board at the Church of the Lakes in Canton.

Her other memberships included the Tennysonians, president of the YWCA, board member of the Alliance Women’s Club, music study club, founder of the House and Garden Club, Senior Center Chorus, Alliance Country Club and the Retired Teachers Association.

Survivors include her husband, Ward Tuttle of Alliance, whom she married December 17, 1950; children, Jeff (Lucy) Tuttle of Santa Clara, California, Jim (Beth) Tuttle of Atlanta, Georgia, Randy (Edna) Tuttle of Columbus, Indiana and Joyce Tuttle of Atlanta, Georgia; sister, Sally Hitchcock of Denver, Colorado; brother, Paul (Joyce) Davis of Topanga Canyon, California; and grandchildren, Josh Tuttle of State College, Pennsylvania, Jamie (Martin) Gutfeldt of Chicago, Illinois, Ben Tuttle and Courtney Tuttle, both of Atlanta, Georgia, and Cristy, Megan and Bryan Tuttle, all of Columbus, Indiana.

Services will be held at 11 a.m., Saturday, July 28, 2018, at Cassaday-Turkle-Christian Funeral Home with Rev. John Partridge officiating. Friends may call from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., prior to the service. Interment will be at Fairmount Memorial Park.

Memorial Contributions may be made to the Greater Alliance Foundation 960 W. State St. Alliance, OH 44601.

Arrangements are by Cassaday-Turkle-Christian Funeral Home, 75 S. Union Ave., Alliance, OH 44601. Alliance, Ohio.

 

Obituary for Ed Smith

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Obituary for  Edmund H. Smith

April 21, 1925 – February 1, 2018
Born in Youngstown, Ohio
Resided in Massillon, Ohio

 

Ed SmithEdmund H. Smith, 92, passed away on Thursday, February 1, 2018. Born April 21, 1925 in Youngstown, Ohio on the kitchen table.

Preceded in death by wife, Ethel L. Deeley whom he married in 1950. Their two are children are Kenneth E (Lisa) Smith of Saco, ME., and Susan L. Neddy-Scopelite of Massillon, Ohio; grandchildren, are Shannon Neddy of Philadelphia, PA, Amanda McNeil of Saco, ME., and Hannah Scopelite of Louisville, Ohio. Also surviving are step-daughters, Maureen (Butch) Altman, Darlene (Buck) Singer and Joellen (Ronnie) Cucitrone all of New Castle, PA. Ed is also preceded in death by his 2nd wife the former Norma J. Kline whom he married February 14, 1998. Recently became a member of Trinity United Methodist Church in Perry Heights, Ohio. He is also survived by several very loved nephews and their families.

No flowers are requested, but rather donations to dad’s passion of helping the homeless and needy. His current project was Homeless Outreach Project (H.O.T) @ 2023 Harrison Ave. SW Canton, Ohio 44706-2734.

Services will be held on Monday, February 5, 2018 at 11:00am at Forest Lawn Memorial Park 5400 Market St, Youngstown, Ohio 44512.
Reed Funeral Home Canton Chapel is entrusted with the arrangements.

 

Eulogy and Obituary for Loretta Doll

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Eulogy for Loretta Doll

April 18, 2018

by Rev. John Partridge

 

Loretta DollIn 1915 the world was different than the one in which we now live.  In December of that year, Frank Sinatra was born, President Woodrow Wilson married Edith Galt in Washington D.C., WWI raged in Europe, heavier than air aircraft were still largely experimental, Ernest Shackleton’s team attempting to cross Antarctica overland was stranded as their ship, the Endurance, was crushed by the ice and sank, and into that world, Loretta Wynn was born in Canton, Ohio on December 3rd, 1915.

Loretta lived with her parents, John and Loretta, and eventually attended, and graduated from McKinley High School in 1934, and then met and married Glen Doll on May 27th, 1939. Before too long, Glen and Loretta welcomed Sally and Ted to their family as well and, in 1950 they moved from Canton to what was then a very rural Perry Township.  By 1955 they had joined Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church which would, in 1968, become the Trinity United Methodist Church.

Although they did a little camping and traveling in the early years, Loretta and Glen both liked staying at home and working the land, planting a garden, growing things, and then canning their produce.  They liked to design the landscaping for the two homes that Glen had built, and then, periodically, or perhaps continually, redesigning and reworking it to suit their tastes and their sense of style.  Maybe it was this sense of style that led Loretta into other adventures as well.  She was a seamstress who made clothes for her children, made bracelets, handbags, and purses, she tried her hand at floral arranging for a while, and everyone knew that she never wanted to throw anything away.

Loretta loved to shop too.  She especially loved to get in on a good deal.  She would go to every sale at Kaufman’s and all the craft stores, and the mall, sometimes twice a day to take full advantage of them.  Glen didn’t get mad, and in fact, even though he didn’t really share her passion for shopping, he went along on all of these trips, and usually just found a chair somewhere so he could sit and watch Loretta shop.  For a while, Loretta even worked at J.C. Penny.  Maybe it was to earn a little extra money, but maybe it was because the employees got a discount.  Loretta even had more than one bank account.  Not because she needed more than one, and not because she was afraid that the bank might fail, but because, once upon a time, you could get really nice gifts for opening a new account, so she would open accounts at different banks just to get the gifts.

At church, Loretta was known for her many hats.  Everyone at church knew that she and her friend Lila Graham would always be, faithfully, wearing a nice hat every Sunday.  And, I suspect, it eventually became something of a good-natured competition.  When it came time to clean out Loretta’s house there were over 100 hats, and while I don’t have a specific number, Lila’s family had an experience that was very similar.  In fact, at Lila’s funeral, they were still giving away hats to anyone that wanted one.

At home, even though she was a bit of a worrier, Loretta was always known as a good cook who was kind, gracious, caring, and could be counted on for offering good advice.  She liked to keep busy even when she had to live in an assisted living facility and later a nursing home.  If there was an activity offered, she was there.  If there was a craft to be made, you can be sure that Loretta was making one.  She did everything.

But through it all, Loretta always loved her family and they loved her back.  For so many years everyone had come to her house for the holidays, and then when she didn’t have a house any longer, she could be counted on to show up at Ted and Nancy’s house.  It finally reached a point where even if Loretta thought that she might skip a Thanksgiving dinner and stay “home” at the Windsor Medical Center, her grandchildren wouldn’t hear of it and insisted that she come.  They would send their dad, or they would go themselves, and maneuver Loretta into someone’s car, and help her out again so that she could spend Thanksgiving Day with her family as she always had.

Our world is very different than the one that Loretta was born into 102 years ago.  Our world is too fast paced, has often seemed to lose its respect for God, and is always focused on making more money, or acquiring more stuff.  But people like Loretta Doll, and the lives that they lived, remind us that there are more important things in life.  They remind us that it’s good to slow down and watch things grow.  It’s good to take time for your family, your friends, your church, and your God.  When the day comes that people gather in a room like this one to remember each one of us, do you think that they will remember that we worked a lot, or that we had a lot of money, or accumulated a lot of stuff, or do we want to be remembered as people who were kind, faithful, loving, generous, caring, and compassionate?

Loretta had her priorities in the right places and her life reminds us that we should do the same.

Although everyone here has good reason to mourn for what they have lost today, I hope that you will remember just how richly blessed you are to have had such a loving, godly, caring woman to show you all how life should be done.   Through Loretta Doll, God has given us all a great gift that has, and should continue, to shape us and bless us throughout our lives.

I pray that we might do half as well.

 

 

 

Obituary

Loretta Wynn Doll of North Canton, Ohio

December 3, 1915 – May 30, 2018

 

Loretta Wynn Doll, age 102, of North Canton passed away Wednesday, May 30, 2018, at Windsor Medical Center. She was born December 3, 1915, in Canton where she resided until 1950 when her family moved to Perry Heights. In 1955 Loretta and family became members of Trinity United Methodist Church of Perry Heights. There she served on the Board of Trustees as Secretary, several committees, and volunteered for many years as a teacher for children in Sunday school and Vacation Bible School. Following graduation from McKinley High School in 1934, Loretta and Glenn Doll were married in Canton on May 27, 1939. She was a dedicated homemaker; however, she did work for the J.C. Penney Company part time as a saleslady from 1969-1972. Known by family and friends as Sis and Aunt Sissy, Loretta was loved by all. She was proud of all members of the family and was eternally optimistic that each would have a successful future.

She was preceded in death by her parents, John and Loretta Wynn, her husband Glenn F. Doll, her daughter Sally A. Doll, two brothers Herbert J. Wynn and Dr. John D. Wynn and a sister Dorothy Wynn Ake. She is survived by her son T. Everett (Nancy) Doll, two granddaughters Audrea (Dr. Robert) Schweikert and Jennifer (Jeffrey) Reider, seven great-grandchildren, five nieces and three nephews.

Private services and interment have been arranged through Arnold Funeral Home officiated by Pastor John Partridge, Trinity United Methodist Church. Memorial contributions in Loretta’s name can be made to Trinity United Methodist Church, 3757 Lincoln Way East, Massillon, OH  44646. The family thanks Dr. Steven Weaver of North Canton Medical Clinic and the staff of Windsor Medical Center and Crossroads Hospice for their compassionate and skilled care graciously provided to Loretta and her family.

 

Everitt Dean Partridge

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Everitt Dean Partridge

January 6, 1955 ~ March 3, 2018 (age 63)

 

 

Everitt Dean Partridge, 63, of Akron, Ohio, was released into the hands of Jesus on March 3, 2018. He was born in Warren, Ohio to Rev. Stanley and Ruth Partridge.

 

He was preceded in death by his father, Stan and is survived by his mother, Ruth; brothers, Stephen (Susan), Mark (Donna) and John (Patti) as well as his nieces and nephews, Matthew, T.J., Jonah, Noah, Lina and Hannah, Nicholas and Sarah.

 

Dean attended and graduated from West Holmes High School in Millersburg, Ohio (1973) and from there went on to attend college where he graduated from Mount Union College in Alliance, Ohio (1977). For several years he was employed at the B.F. Goodrich company in Akron and upon their relocation, he then found a position working at Republic Steel in Canton for 21 years.

 

He has a fond appreciation for music which was evident in the years he spent singing in the Akron Symphony Chorus and for a few years sang with his dad who also was a part of the Chorus for many years. He was a long time member of Park United Methodist Church in Akron where he volunteered as a tutor for the GED program offering countless hours of instruction. He was also active as a part of the Wednesday morning Trustee fixit and repair program as well as serving as an usher in the morning worship services. In recent years, he was a partial caregiver to his mother and helped her with odd jobs and repairs around the house in light of dad not being there.

 

Visitation will be held Friday, March 9, 2018 at Park United Methodist Church, 2308 24th St in Akron from 5-6 p.m. with a service of celebration to follow with Rev. John Partridge officiating. Private Burial will be held at a later time.

 

Eulogy for Donald J. McCauley

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Eulogy for Donald J. McCauley

May 14, 2018

by Rev. John Partridge

 

Donald J. “Doc” McCauley was born on December 9th, 1932.  He was the youngest of seven children, graduated from Kenmore High School, and then joined the Air Force, served as a hydraulics mechanic between the Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War, and then worked at Babcock and Wilcox for 33 years.

Along the way, he found the love of his life in Betty Ann Kozy, married her, and loved being with her.  Everyone knew how much he loved her.  It was obvious.  He couldn’t be within arm’s reach without touching her.  He would literally never walk by without reaching out to her.

When Brian was a baby, just a few weeks old, Don lost two fingers while helping a friend repair a lawn mower.  And so, from then on, he did all the childcare (including diapering, with cloth diapers and safety pins) one-handed.  As Brian got older, Don was his baseball coach and soon discovered that Brian pitched so hard that it would hurt Don’s hand.

For many people, it was never Donald, or even Don, but instead it was always “Doc.”

He loved to fish.  Whenever he took a day off, his coworkers knew where he would be and they hung a “Gone Fishing” sign on his locker.  He loved the Mogadore Reservoir and kept a boat there.

He loved fishing with his family too.  Many times his kids joined him at Mogadore and, when they got older, a few times they were invited to go on the annual fishing trip to Ross Lake in Quebec, Canada with Don and his brother Marion.

Don’s love of fishing, and his artistic talent, led him to becoming an excellent, self-taught, taxidermist.  Long before YouTube videos were available, he acquired a “teach yourself taxidermy” book and, within months, it was as if he’d been doing it his entire life.  He was also an incredible self-taught artist.  He did many murals and backdrops for programs at church.  Just like when he taught himself taxidermy, he acquired a Bob Ross book and taught himself how to paint with oils.  Many of his paintings were displayed at Park United Methodist Church, as well as with multiple family members who have cherished them.

He was a faithful and active member of Park United Methodist Church for many years, and served as an usher and a trustee for as long as many of us can remember.  Don was always faithful to his family, and to his God.

Don loved to garden and, as the years went by, his yard became smaller as his garden grew.  Every year he waited impatiently for the tomatoes to ripen!  But other than his tomatoes, Don was known to be extraordinarily patient and generous.  He often said, “I’m not going to bother you, but if you need anything, all you need to do is ask.”

I knew Don, and I’ve known Brian for a lot of years.  The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, ‘ya know?

Those of us who knew Don know that he left an impression on our lives.  We may not have his talent, but if we learned to be a little more patient, a little more kind, a little more generous, or a little more faithful from knowing him, then we know that God has given us an invaluable gift through the life of Don McCauley.

Don usually did what he wanted to do and never wanted anyone to worry about him, and today is no different.  He would not want you to mourn, but to celebrate.  He touched a lot of lives on many special ways and will not be forgotten.

 

 

 

Obituary – Donald J. McCauley

December 9, 1932 ~ May 9, 2018 (age 85)

 

Donald J. “Doc” McCauley, 85, passed away May 9, 2018 after a long battle with cancer. Doc was a long-time member of Park United Methodist Church.

 

Doc will be remembered for his passion for fishing, his talent with oil and canvas, and his joy of gardening.

 

He was preceded in death by his wife, Betty in 1987 and son, Mark in 1988; sisters, Kathleen, Pat and Eileen; brothers, John and Mare; he is survived by his son, Brian; daughter-in-law, Robin; granddaughters, Katie and Kara; great granddaughter, Alexis; brother, Jim.

 

There will be a small memorial Service at the Schlup-Pucak Funeral Home, 788 Kenmore Blvd, Akron Monday, May 14 at 9:00am with Pastor John Partridge officiating. Burial to follow at Greenlawn Memorial Park.

Eulogy and Obituary for Arlene L. Jarvis

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Eulogy for Arlene L. Jarvis

April 18, 2016

by Rev. John Partridge

 

Most of us are not too good at remembering what happened on a particular date in history. We memorized “Columbus sailed the ocean blue in fourteen hundred and ninety two” but beyond that we’re usually a little baffled.  And so, this morning I’ve done a little research.  In 1919 Jack Dempsey won the world heavyweight boxing title, Albert Einstein was doing research at a university in Germany, Edsel Ford succeeded his father Henry as the President of Ford Motor Company, George Bernard Shaw’s new play premiered in New York City, Mahatma Gandhi led protests in India, Babe Ruth still played for the Boston Red Sox, WW1 officially ended with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, and Arlene L. Wiandt was born in Zoar, Ohio on May 31st.

At first glance, it wouldn’t seem like any of those are a fair comparison.  How could a little girl from Zoar, Ohio possibly compare to so many well known people?  Honestly, it isn’t a fair comparison because, for most of us, Arlene wins that contest easily.  Few of us have seen Babe Ruth play ball, and as much as many of those famous people are well known, few of them had any immediate impact on our lives.  But Arlene Jarvis sure did.

Arlene grew up in Zoar, went to school in Bolivar, and, as the Second World War began she fell in love and got married.  If you think you know that part of the story, you’d probably be wrong because the man she married wasn’t Delmar.  We’re not sure who he was, but Arlene fell in love and married a man who shipped out for the war and she was widowed that same year.  This must have been a painful experience but Arlene never talked about it.  Her children didn’t find out that this even happened until a few years ago.  And then, as life went on, Arlene managed the London candy store at the corner of Perry Drive and Lincoln Way.  One day after work she went to the roller skating rink and met a guy named Delmar who was a regular competitor in the skating races there.  One thing led to another, and they were married in 1941.

Given her history, it must have been frightening for her when Delmar shipped out on the destroyer, the USS Kephardt, and served in both the Atlantic and the Pacific theaters, but she stayed faithful and waited for his return.  While she waited, Arlene worked at several different naval bases in Maryland but after Delmar came home, she didn’t work any more.  Instead, became a full-time mom and did everything for her kids including regular trips to Lake Cable to the swimming hole where she got some sun and socialized with the other moms as the kids splashed and swam.  But she also became Delmar’s constant companion.  They did everything together and they did everything they could to be with their family.

If their children or grandchildren were in it, Delmar and Arlene did whatever they could to be there.  Whether it was working at camp, or watching basketball, or the marching band, or something else, they were there.

If any of the family were in town, they did everything together whether it was going to the grocery story or anything else.  And with a son living in Wisconsin, they met halfway to visit one another each Easter and so, every year they would meet at a hotel in South Bend, Indiana.  Every year they would find places to go together, they would take walks on the Notre Dame University campus, and since the Amish restaurant that they liked was closed on Sunday, they would have Easter Sunday dinner together on Saturday evening.

Arlene Jarvis probably never met Babe Ruth, or Mahatma Gandhi, or Albert Einstein, but neither did any of us.  Honestly, even though those folks are famous, the things that they did didn’t change us that much.  But the things that Arlene Jarvis did changed the world for some of us.  Edsel Ford didn’t take us swimming or sing us to sleep when we didn’t feel well.  George Bernard Shaw wasn’t there to make a casserole or comfort friends at Trinity Church who had lost a loved one.  Arlene did all of those things, and more, for the people in this room.  For us, through her faithfulness, through her compassion, through her tenderness, and through her love, one life at a time, Arlene Jarvis changed the world.

There’s a lesson there for all of us.  Few, if any, of us will ever be so famous that our names are recognized all over the world for a hundred years.  But every one of us has the power to change our little corner of the world through faithfulness, compassion, tenderness, and love.

All it takes to change the world is for more of us to be like Arlene.

 

 

Arlene Jarvis Obituary

 

Arlene Jarvis

Arlene Lydia Jarvis

May 31, 1919 – April 10, 2017
Born in Zoar, Ohio
Resided in Massillon, OH

Arlene L. Jarvis, age 97; of Massillon, went home to be with the Lord on Monday, April 08, 2017. She was born to the late William and Pauline (Sylvan) Wiandt on May 31, 1919 in Zoar, OH. She married Delmar Jarvis on March 01, 1941 and they shared 75 years together until his passing in 2016.
Arlene was a devoted Wife, Mom, Grandmother, and Great-Grandmother. She managed a London Candy Store for 5 years.
She is survived by her sons Keith (Betty) Jarvis, Kenneth (Jeannine) Jarvis and Joel (Sandi) Jarvis; his grandchildren Keith (Cherie) Jarvis, Elizabeth (Jack) Jarvis-Whitehouse, Allison (Scott) Sigman, Amy (Jeff) Tillar, Ashley Jarvis, Matt (Kelly) Jarvis, Corey (Lindsay) Jarvis, Brandon Jarvis and; 11 great grandchildren a sister-in-law Wilma Mae Levengood, as well as a host of relatives and friends.
A Celebration of her life will be held at 11a.m. on Tuesday, April 18, 2017 at the Paquelet & Arnold-Lynch Funeral Home. Visitation from 10a.m. until the time of the service. Donations in Arlene’s memory can be made to Harbor Light Hospice. 25 S. Main Street, Suite 7, Munroe Falls, OH 44262.

Eulogies and Obituary for Alan Keller

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Memories and Eulogies Shared

Trinity United Methodist Church

January 21, 2017

Pastor Julia Wertz

TIME OF REMEMBRANCE  

 

Bryan Corrie    System Engineer IT Dept 870 Delta Air Lines

Alan and I started our careers together back in the early eighties at Delta Air Lines as IT engineers. We were in the same training class in Atlanta. We both moved to Jacksonville Florida on March 15th 1984 with our belongings in the same moving truck. He, I and my wife Linda became very good friends. Alan and I worked side by side and never had a single disagreement. Alan moved to Orlando then FT Myers but we continued to be in the same department and still worked together often. He was not a practicing Christian but you wouldn’t know it by his actions. He always respected and loved his fellow man and lived the life like a Christian. He always did the right thing. One of his last ditch efforts at a cure for his cancer was a visit to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville. My wife took him there. They pretty much said there was nothing they could do for him. When he got in the car to leave my wife asked him “Where do you want to go?” His answer was HEAVEN. He was a Very Very Special Person and friend and will be dearly missed.

—

Scott Feucht Field Service Engineer

Uncle Alan was a guy who wanted to make you laugh. Growing up, this was usually by tickling you to death. As we got older, it turned into witty one liners and funny jokes. Alan’s laugh was contagious. He always wanted to bring the best out of a person and to see them truly happy. Going to Uncle Alan’s place in Florida for family vacations was always a highlight I looked forward to growing up. Going to Walt Disney World, the Everglades, and the amazing beaches. Alan lived his life to the fullest. Never one for drama or stressing over things. As long as he had his Pepsi and cigarette, he had a smile on his face. I love you Uncle Alan. Always keep that smile on your face and keep making everyone around you laugh. Also…. Do me a favor… Send Gma my love and tell her that her money is in the bank

—

Pamela Berger RN/CHPN

HI!My name is Pam and I was the nurse who took care of Alan in his home in Florida. I wanted to share with you how privileged I was to have been his nurse. Alan was a year younger than I am so I guess it always makes me realize my mortality when I have young patients. Maybe that’s why I identified with him.  He was funny. He was soft spoken and sweet. He had all the reasons in the world to be bitter and angry but he wasn’t! I asked him one day why he did not pursue a lawsuit pertaining to his (lack of ) care and his reply was “What ‘s the point?” Exactly…. What would have been the point of him spending his last days on earth angry and negative? He chose to be happy and content with what he had left.

He was a loyal friend and his friends were fiercely loyal to him. They drove hours to check on him. They took turns visiting just to make sure he was doing okay. They honored his wishes and let him have his time alone when he needed it. They loved him so much!

Alan chose to have his sister and father at his side when he left this world. They took care of his every need. They stopped everything in their lives to be with him and surrounded him with their love. I can’t think of a better definition of “family”.

Every once an a while I get to be a small part of the end of a special  person’s story. I want to thank Alan for letting me be a part of his. I have been blessed to know him.

—

Wayne Moss  Director – IT Field Operations

My remembrances of Alan are:

Alan loved to laugh, and he enjoyed making others laugh.  In fact, he wasn’t satisfied until he had people around him laughing and smiling.

I would say that Alan was “Quickly Witty”.   He could easily verbalize an accurate response to whatever was being discussed.  Most often, his responses generated smiles and laughter.

 

Alan had a keen ability to find a happy way to cope with a challenge.

 

He didn’t complain, as least not to me…   He treasured his Delta Family and his customers.   He was much more than a co-worker.   He was Family.

 

It has hurt me deeply, to know even slightly, the enormous pain and difficulty he has endured.

—

 

1 Corinthians 13The Message (MSG)The Way of Love

13 If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate.

2 If I speak God’s Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, “Jump,” and it jumps, but I don’t love, I’m nothing.

3-7 If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have.
Love doesn’t strut,
Doesn’t have a swelled head,
Doesn’t force itself on others,
Isn’t always “me first,”
Doesn’t fly off the handle,
Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn’t revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.

8-10 Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives, our incompletes will be canceled.

11 When I was an infant at my mother’s breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant. When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good.

12 We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!

13 But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.

 

Meditation/Eulogy    “FAITH, HOPE AND LOVE….THE GREATEST OF THESE IS LOVE

I believe that the understanding of ALAN’S LIFE  is expressed very well in today’s SCRIPTURE READING FROM I CORINTHIANS 13 demonstrating how ALAN GAVE AND RECEIVED THE GIFT OF LOVE DURING HIS LIFE’S JOUNEY.   

ALAN ENJOYED loving and receiving love as being part of God’s creation where there is a time for everything. We are given the gift of human life by God and at the end of this earthly life there is yet another gift from God—the gift of eternal life. In the gospel of John we hear that if we have faith in Jesus Christ, who died on the cross so that our sins could be forgiven, then we will also enjoy eternal life with Jesus.

Alan L. Keller was born on May 29, 1960 in Massillon to Arvine Keller and the late Dorothy (Yatsko) Keller. Alan was a graduate of Perry High School, Akron University and Embry-Riddle University.

Alan loved to be the life of the party. He was kind, thoughtful, generous and caring. He had never met a stranger. He thought of life as an adventure and loved to live it. He worked as a Technology Specialist for Delta Airlines for thirty – four years.  LOVED PETS…KITTY CLEO 20 YR

—

 

written BY ALAN 2 weeks before his passing:


Hey folks, this will probably be the last post from me as I continue to get weaker and everything becomes much harder to do.

It has shocked me to find out over the last few months how many caring and sincere friends I have accumulated over the years. Sure, we all collect a few good friends, but I was so flabbergasted that there were so many cut from the finest material and would do anything to help me. Taking time from their lives, their work and their families. You folks are the reason that my life has been such a blast and I could never thank you all enough.

As I pass to the next stage, the biggest worry that I have is that our children are losing their innocence, their childhood if you will. Childhood was such fun for me and I wish it could stay that way for all kids, but with the shootings, killings and like of viagras and other commercials, their innocence is gone

I’ve been pretty much a no drama person and if I had one line of wisdom to leave folks, it would be before you start or continue an argument, ask yourself one question: A week from now or a month from now, will this argument really matter? Almost every time you’ll realize it’s about something trivial that won’t have any affect on the future except to cause hash words and bad feelings until both people realize this. So forget the argument and go do something enjoyable and life will improve instantly. Even a quarter pounder with cheese beats a two hour fight.

I’ve been blessed with terrific friends and a family that has been second to none. Maybe you look at it as I had a good hand dealt to me? Well, you can take a bad hand with a good attitude and turn it into something enjoyable. It’s just up to you.

Thank you and good bye.  Smile every day, take care and I’ll see you on the other side.

—

TO CHERISH ALAN’S MEMORY ARE HIS father. his sister, Cheryl (Richard) Feucht; three nephews, Scott (Revital) Feucht, Cory (Maggie) Feucht and Drew Feucht; and two grand-nephews, Camden and Owen

Alan has requested that his friends and family should show love for your fellow man, give generously to those in need and live life to the fullest.

—

FOOT PRINTS IN THE SAND

LAST night I had a dream.  I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord.  Across the sky flashed scenes from my life.  For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand: one belonged to me, the other to the Lord.

 AFTER the last scene of my life flashed before me, I looked back at the footprints in the sand.  I noticed that at many times along the path of my life, especially at the very lowest and saddest times, there was only one set of footprints.

THIS really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it.  “Lord, you said  once I decided to follow you, You’d walk with me all the way.  But I noticed that during the saddest and most troublesome times of my life, there was only one set of footprints.  I don’t understand why, when I needed You the most, You would leave me.”

THE Lord replied, “My son, my precious child, I love you and I would never leave you.  During your times of suffering, when you could see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”

 

______________________

 

tim2bkeller2b2528not2bmy2bfuneral2529Obituary

Alan Lee Keller


May 29, 1960 – January 13, 2017 
Resided in North Fort Myers, FL

Alan L. Keller, 56, passed away at home in North Fort Myers, FL, surrounded by his family on January 13, 2017.

He was born on May 29, 1960 in Massillon to Arvine Keller and the late Dorothy (Yatsko) Keller.  Alan was a graduate of Perry High School, Akron University and Embry-Riddle University.

Alan loved to be the life of the party. He was kind, thoughtful, generous and caring. He had never met a stranger.  He thought of life as an adventure and loved to live it. He worked as a Technology Specialist for Delta Airlines for thirty – four years.

In addition to his father he is also survived by his sister, Cheryl (Richard) Feucht; three nephews, Scott (Revital) Feucht, Cory (Maggie) Feucht and Drew Feucht; and two grand-nephews, Camden and Owen.

Friends may call on Saturday, January 21, 2017 from 10:00am-11:00am at Trinity United Methodist Church where a funeral service will be held at 11:00am, Rev. Julia Wertz, officiating.  Burial will be in Union Lawn Cemetery.

Messages of condolence may be sent to the family atwww.arnoldlynch.com

Alan has requested in-lieu of flowers that his friends and family should show love for your fellow man, give generously to those in need and live life to the fullest.

Eulogy and Obituary for Lann L. Ford

PastorPartridge Eulogy , , ,

Eulogy for Lann N. Ford

December 29, 2016

by Rev. John Partridge

 

With my arrival here at Trinity Church five years ago, I came into the middle of everyone’s lives and clearly the middle of Lann and Larry’s difficult story.  When I arrived, Lann had already been fighting for several years, had already retired, and was already staying mostly at home.  Everyone knows that part of the story so there isn’t any need for me to say much more except that even at that late date, there were things that I learned from Lann Ford.  But before we talk about that, let’s go back to the beginning.

Lann N. Huntsman was born November 5th, 1955 as the fifth child (there would eventually be eight) and second daughter of Robert and Dorothy Huntsman.  From the beginning, it was obvious that Lann was her own person.  She had a plan, and she didn’t care if other people, even her parents had different expectations.  She was a good student, but more than that, she had a plan.  She didn’t just go to school, she wanted to get an education and there were certain pieces, certain bits of education that she wanted, and she made sure that she got them.  She was in speech, and in plays, and she deliberately designed and used her high school career to prepare her for college and the things that she wanted out of life in general.  She knew that she wanted to go to college, even though no one else in her family had gone and even though college education wasn’t something that her parents thought was important for girls.  It didn’t matter.  She pushed and she pushed and she went anyway.  More than that, she worked to earn her own money to pay for it.

Lann knew that she wanted to be an elementary school special education teacher but when Bard was ready to start school, he wasn’t too sure what he wanted to do or what he would be good at.  But at registration, Lann knew exactly what he should do, and she took him by the hand and got him signed up.  Not only that, she got him a job to help pay for it, and Bard told me that Lann basically got him through his first two years of school at Kent Stark.  The two of them always scheduled their classes so that they could have time to eat lunch together every day.  Lann excelled in education, both as a student and as a teacher, and on the day that she graduated, she was the first in her family to earn a college degree.

After graduation, Lann worked in Massillon, and at Reedurban, and several others before landing at St. Joan of Arc, although even then, technically, she worked for Perry Local Schools.  Lann Ford was a teacher through and through.  She was selfless.  Her students were “her” kids, she loved her kids, she was their teacher, their friend, and their greatest advocate.

I mentioned earlier that Lann disagreed with her parents on the subject of education, but despite their disagreement, she loved her family and she was still daddy’s little girl.  She knew how to use tools, but not on a car.  She never touched a car.   There was always dad or a brother to do that for her, and she was fine with that even though all of the cars that she drove were always beaters.  Lann never owned a nice car until Larry bought one for her.

This reminds me, Larry and Lann met because Lann was dating Larry’s friend Paul Vaccani.  But they broke up, and when they did, Larry was waiting and stepped right in.  It must have gone well, because they were married in 1980 outside of the North Canton Civic Center.  It had rained all day and stopped just in time for the wedding.  Next door, there was a girls’ softball game being played, but the coaches stopped the game during the ceremony so that they wouldn’t be too disruptive.  In 1983 Dara arrived and then Dustin in 1986.  As much as Lann loved her students, she loved her family more.  She was very family oriented and attended everything that her kids were in, she never missed a game or an event even when she had to get there in a wheelchair.  And Lann was a great supporter and fan of her husband too.  When Larry was awarded Teacher of the Year at Claymont, nearly all of Larry’s acceptance speech was about how Lann was responsible and why she was the reason that he was good at what he did.

I asked the family to tell me about vacations that they took together and no one could really pinpoint any one big trip or talk about an annual camping trip or anything.  They remembered that Lann really loved Utah, and she loved to plan parties, but nothing else really stood out.  Even so, vacations were about family.  Since Larry and Lann were both teachers they had the summer off, but the impression that I got was that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, ‘ya know?  Dara and Dustin were just as busy and as driven as Lann and they had plans for the summer, and so Larry and Lann would spend the summer doing whatever their kids were doing.  Lann just loved being around family.

Of course, not going away on a big vacation trip meant that the summer often turned into a “stay-cation.”  Especially since Lann loved keep busy, there was always something to do in the house, to the house, or around the house.  One summer they tore up all the carpet, sanded, and refinished the hardwood floors underneath… in the whole house.  Another summer they sided the garage, and so on.

As we met together, there were things that I heard from her family that I had heard many times before from many other people, and things that I had learned for myself.  Lann Ford was a ball of energy and was always cheerful.  She never seemed to have a bad day.  Whenever she met someone, it was as if she had always known them.  She liked to talk, genuinely cared about people, and never held a grudge.  She was always happy and always thought of herself as a dancer.  She danced on her toes from the time she was a little girl and she loved gymnastics.

Lann was first diagnosed with Multi-System Atrophy in 2004 and took disability retirement in 2007 but through it all, she always handled her disability with calm, humility, and grace. When I first met her, Lann was already in a wheelchair, had difficulty speaking and was already transitioning to using her spelling board.  It was hard for us to communicate and between her soft voice and my hearing loss, it was impossible without another person to listen and repeat what she had said.  But even then, she just smiled and did the best that she could.  Lann Ford had every reason to be frustrated and angry from time to time.  Everyone would have understood if she occasionally yelled at God and lashed out at people… but she never did.

I’m not sure that I would be able to do what she did if I was confronted with the sort of challenges that she faced.  But that was the strength of her character.  This was the woman who, even in high school, knew what she wanted to do, where she wanted to go, and what she needed to be doing to get there.  This was the woman who determined to go to college even though no one from her family had done it before, even though her parents didn’t think that it was important, and even though she had to find ways to pay for it herself.  This was the woman who came to every event that her children participated in, was her husband’s greatest supporter, encourager, and cheerleader, and who challenged her employers, or administrators, or the system if she needed to so that she could advocate for her students.  Lann Ford must be one of the strongest women that I have ever known.  From the very beginning, she was determined to live life on her terms and she refused to allow her disability to change that.  Lann refused to allow her disease to change who she was no matter what.

My friends, if any of us have learned anything at all from Lann Ford, it’s this: If any of us can be half as brave, half as strong, half as determined, half as kind, half as compassionate, half as caring, and half as happy as she was, we will change the world.  I am certain of this because every one of us is here today because Lann Ford inspired us or changed us in some way, and every one of us that is here can name five more people who aren’t here for whom she did the same thing.  As we leave this place, the best way for us to honor Lann is for us to be for our families, our friends, our coworkers, and the people around us, the kind of a person, the kind of a blessing, that Lann was for us.

—————

Lann liked the words from Ecclesiastes 3:1-14, as well as the song, Turn, Turn, Turn by The Byrds which used that scripture as the basis for the lyrics.  We aren’t able to play the song for you today, but listen to these words recorded for us by King Solomon:

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

2 a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3 a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5 a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to throw away;
7 a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.

9 What gain have the workers from their toil? 10 I have seen the business that God has given to everyone to be busy with. 11 He has made everything suitable for its time; moreover he has put a sense of past and future into their minds, yet they cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. 12 I know that there is nothing better for them than to be happy and enjoy themselves as long as they live; 13 moreover, it is God’s gift that all should eat and drink and take pleasure in all their toil. 14 I know that whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it; God has done this, so that all should stand in awe before him.

————–

lann-fordObituary

Lann N. Ford

November 4, 1955 – December 24, 2016
Resided in Canton, OH

 

Lann N. (Huntsman) Ford, 61, passed away December 24, 2016 following an extended illness. She was born November 4, 1955 in Canton to the late Robert and Dorothy (Tyrell) Huntsman.

Lann was a 1974 graduate of Perry High School. She was an elementary L.D. teacher for Perry Local Schools until she took disability retirement in 2007. Lann loved her work and was a devoted advocate for her L.D. students. Lann was a member of Trinity United Methodist Church in Perry Heights.

Lann was preceded in death by her parents. She is survived by her husband of 36 years, Larry K. Ford; daughter, Dara; son, Dustin and daughter-in-law, Megan; siblings, Lee Huntsman, Brent Huntsman, Brad Huntsman, Lynn Fay, Laynn Vaccani, Bard Huntsman, and Brett Huntsman; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Calling hours will be held in Reed Funeral Home Canton Chapel on Wednesday, December 28 from 6-8pm. Funeral service will be held in Trinity United Methodist Church (3757 Lincoln Way East Massillon, Ohio 44646) on Thursday, December 29 at 10am with Pastor John Partridge officiating. Interment will follow at Richville Cemetery. In Lieu of flowers family suggests donations to Trinity United Methodist Church in Perry Heights.

Eulogy and Obituary for Richard (Dick) Lewton

PastorPartridge Eulogy , , ,

Eulogy for Richard (Dick) Lewton

December 12, 2016

by Rev. John Partridge

 

In a way, this isn’t new.  Almost all of us have experienced loss before.  Most of us know what it is to lose people, friends, and family that we love.  But in many ways, this is different.  Richard (Dick) Lewton was a different sort of a man than many of the people we know and so losing him is an entirely different sort of a loss.  Regardless of who you are, and regardless of how you knew Dick, we have all lost something of great value.  Dick was one of the people that, regardless of whether we were family, or friends, or employers, or employees, or church family, or something else, Dick was on the incredibly short list of people that we knew, that no matter what happened, we could rely upon to keep his word, and to get things done.  But before we go too far in that direction, let’s go back to the beginning.

Dick was born on February of 1929 in Lisbon, Ohio and lived there until he was about 12 years old.  That was just long enough for him to pick up a few mannerisms and unique speech habits that although they may not, technically, have come from Lisbon, that’s where the blame has typically fallen.  And so, at the age of 12 his parents moved from Lisbon to Perry Township.  To make a little money, Dick became a paperboy, and curiously, one of the houses on his route was the home of Wanda and her parents.  Nothing really happened at that point, except we know that is the earliest that Dick and Wanda knew one another.

A few years later, after Dick had graduated from Lincoln High School and was about 20, his brother Ralph had returned home from his time of military service, Ralph asked Dick to be the best man in his wedding.  As it happened, Ralph was marrying Wanda’s sister, and Mary asked her to be her maid of honor.  Now before you go and think that this is some kind of fairy tale thing, Wanda clearly remembers asking her mother, “Do I have to spend the whole day with him?”  She was none too excited about the possibilities.  But, she told me, as the day wore on she discovered that this guy was actually pretty nice.  Three years after that, Dick and Wanda were married, at Trinity church, and bought a house together, and it was only then that Dick got drafted and left for the Korean Conflict.  He was gone for almost two years.  Oh, there’s something else I should mention, when Dick left for Korea he left a little something behind and Ron was born not long after he left.  As it happened, the Red Cross failed to notify him, and he only found out about the birth of his son from a letter from one of his relatives.  By the time Dick came home and got to meet his son, Ron was already 13 or 14 months old.

As I met with Dick’s family, his children told me that they never, in their entire lives, saw Dick and Wanda fight.  Of course, they are sure that there must have been the occasional disagreement between them, but if they did, it never happened in front of the kids.  In fact, their children told me that they could never remember a time when Dick even got particularly upset with them, although to be fair, Wanda admits that they were blessed by children who never really caused them any problems.

I’m not really sure, after delivering newspapers at the age of 12, when Dick really began working in retail.  When he was in Korea he ran the Post Exchange, or PX, which, for those of you who might not have experience military life, the PX is a sort of general store and is often the only connection with the “real world” and the only chance that men and women in uniform have to buy much of anything, particularly when they are in a combat zone.  And so, after Dick came home, he started working for the Acme grocery chain and did so for the next 43 years.  As manager, he worked lots of hours.  He worked 6 days a week and they were long days.   And then, with the family waiting in the car, he still had to stop at the store every Sunday after church to make sure that all of the freezers and refrigerators were working properly.  But then, after he checked that everything was okay, every Sunday during the summer, the whole family would drive to Atwood Lake where they would meet Ralph and Mary and the entire extended family and all the cousins would be together.  In all, work took a lot of Dick’s time, but any time that he wasn’t at work, you know that he would be with his family, or at church, or both.

As a family they would do things together any time they could.  They traveled together to Atwood Lake every Sunday in the summer, they went to the Outer Banks, and over the years they went camping in Michigan, West Virginia, Hocking Hills, Mohican and other places.  And the whole family went hiking, in all of those places, and wherever they could.  Later, Dick and Wanda organized 17 different bus trips to New York and Chicago and places all over.  Many of those trips were with the folks from their Sunday school class.  And on top of all that, Dick and Wanda still found time to be alone from time to time, and together, just the two of them, they traveled to Alaska and Hawaii.

By the time his grandchildren arrived on the scene, he had retired from Acme and he wasn’t about to miss a single minute of anything if he could help it.  He went to everything, every dance, every volleyball game, every football game, everything.  By now you probably have the impression that Dick Lewton had a strong work ethic, and you’d be right.  His work ethic was as strong as they come, but if you thing about it, it wasn’t just about work.  Whatever Dick did, he committed himself, he devoted himself, wholeheartedly, to doing it to the best of his ability with everything that he had.  He worked like crazy at Acme, even when he suffered from terrible headaches he would still go to work.  He joined the Canton Kiwanis club and became their president.  He spent hours and hours helping with the Genoa schoolhouse project.  He was the president of the condo association.  He still attended monthly lunches with his friends from Lincoln High School.  He enjoyed working at the church and he was, as I noted earlier, one of those people that you knew you could call to get things done, and you knew that if he agreed to do it, that it would absolutely get done.  He taught Sunday school for ten years, was the president of the Pathfinders class, and worked on almost all of the church committees at one time or another, although he liked working with the church finances more than the others things.

Richard Lewton was the kind of a man that could talk to anybody and nobody was a stranger, at least not for long.  Everyone who knew him, liked him, and that includes all of the employees who worked for him.  He was the kind of a man who didn’t talk about people behind their back and who, despite working six or even seven days a week, with long hours, never spoke negatively of his employer.  Dick always had to be busy with something or be busy talking to someone.  He was always busy with a hobby, or building something, or fixing something, or even planning something.  Even when he really couldn’t do a lot himself, he was still imagining what could be done and really seemed to enjoy proposing ideas to my sons for their Eagle Scout projects.

Just a moment ago, I mentioned that, as a family, they would do things together any time they could.  His children admitted that, learning from Dick’s example, and with some encouragement from him, they often would look for an excuse to get together.  They would have campfires, or bonfires, or picnics, or some other kind of gathering just so that family could get together.  And Dick loved every minute of it.  He once told them, “This is what it’s all about.”  It was all about the gathering.  It was all about being together.  It was all about family.  It was all about… love.

Everyone who knew Dick Lewton always felt both loved and valued.  And in the world in which we live, that is truly a special gift.  If I had to boil everything that I know about Dick Lewton into four words, I’d end up with words like family, committed, faithfulness, and… love.

I have no difficulty imagining that as Richard Lewton arrived at the gates of heaven, he heard the words of his master saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25:21)

 

 

Tyler Higgins (grandson):

Yesterday we lost the greatest grandpa anyone could ask for.  Thank you for introducing me to woodworking, taking me fishing when I was younger, and teaching me to golf (although I don’t know how much you taught me golfing if you look at my scorecard).  I’m going to miss your back cracking bear hugs and your amazing personality.  I just want to thank you for everything you have done for me and turning me into who I am today.

 

Jennifer (Jenni) Lewton-Yates (granddaughter):

The last time I lived in Ohio and got to see Grandpa more than maybe just once or twice a year was thirteen years ago, and writing this now I realize that almost everything I think and feel about him is focalized through my eyes as a either child or at best a “barely adult,” so I generally just come up with a feeling of warm fuzzy –and that’s difficult to put into words.  He had the best toys (usually battery operated and noise making), a pool when I was little (he could shoot amazing water jets with his hands), always had candy or cookies in the house, ice cream before bed when I spent the night, chocolate milk when we went out to eat, cable TV –almost like he was a giant kid.  I loved the way his eyes got extra sparkly when he smiled, which was a lot.  He taught me how to play checkers and the importance of antiques –that’s a lesson I may have internalized and taken to the extreme in my choice of career.  As an adult I see that he modeled, really without ever making an overt point of it, two thing that have been so important to me as I’ve learned to make a home so far from family.  First –he loved Grandma; that was so very, very clear.  Many of my memories of him are inextricably linked to thoughts of her because they were and are a pair. This steadfast companionship in a spouse –Grandpa got that and showed that.  Most of the time his eyes were sparkling at Grandma.  Second –he took participation in a church community seriously.  What to a child sounded like strange talk about renovations to a crazy place called the “northex” (one of Grandpa’s charming Lisbon pronunciations like “chimbly”) –Sunday school classes who made peanut brittle were much more up my ally—I now understand this as part of the work that keeps a church going.  Now that I’ve had to put down new roots far from home, I recognize how important being a part of a church community is to my sense of well-being.  Grandpa clearly got that, too.  I will forever be grateful for the fun, for the boundless love, and for the fantastic example you set forward.

Lauren Higgins (granddaughter):

My grandpa was an amazing, caring, and such a loveable person.  He was such an amazing person to look up to.  I am beyond blessed to be able to call him my grandpa.  Growing up, both of my grandparents were at every little league softball, cheerleading, and volleyball game.  If they weren’t at one of my games, they were watching my brother at one of his games.  We are so grateful to be able to say that.  Not a lot of people know what it is like to have grandparents that are willing to spoil you with their time rather than material things.  As we grow older, that is something that I will always cherish.  I can’t express how grateful that I will forever be to both of my grandparents for that.

Growing up, my favorite holiday was always Thanksgiving.  I loved this holiday because I got to spend the entire weekend at my grandparents’ house.  I would stay the night and we would watch Christmas movies and my grandpa and I would eat way too much ice cream.  Over the weekend we would help my grandma decorate Christmas cookies.  Now, if you know my grandpa, you know how ornery he was.  He would frost the cookies but he would “accidentally break them,” and say “Oh well, no one wants to eat a broken Santa Claus, looks like I have to eat it.”  After the 12th cookie, my grandma caught on to what he was doing.  These silly memories may have not seemed like anything, but they were everything to me.  I can’t even put into words how great of a person and grandfather he was.  I just want to thank both my grandpa and grandma for everything that they have ever done for me, and thank you grandpa for being such a positive impact in my life.

 

John 3:16-21 (one of Dick’s favorites)

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.

 

 

richard-lewtonObituary

Richard (Dick) Lewton

February 24, 1929 – November 30, 2016
Resided in Perry Township, OH

Born 2/24/1929 in Lisbon, Ohio to Carl and Jessie Lewton. Moved as a teenager to Perry Township where he resided until his death on November 30.

Proceeded in death by his parents, sister Jean Evans, and brother Harold.

Dick leaves behind loving and devoted wife of 67+ years, Wanda. She has been at his side faithfully every day throughout his decline over the past 5 months. He is survived his older brother Ralph (Mary). His children are Ron (Kathy), Denny, and Kari (Dean) Higgins; grandchildren Jennifer (David) Yates, Tyler and Lauren Higgins, great-granddaughter Lily Yates. He was also very close to his extended family which includes many nieces and nephews.

Dick proudly served his country in the Korean War, was retired as a store manager from Acme Grocery after 43 years of service, and was always very active in his church (Trinity UMC) and community organizations. He was a past president of the Canton Kiwanis Club. He loved his family dearly; he was a friend to many.

We will miss him greatly.

His life will be celebrated on Monday, December 12th at 11 a.m. at Trinity United Methodist Church. The family will receive friends at the Paquelet & Arnold-Lynch Funeral Home on Sunday, December 11th from 2-4 p.m. and on Monday at the church from 10-11 a.m.

Contributions can be made in his memory to the Perry History Club for the renovation of the historic 1893 Genoa grade school building, P.O. BOX # 80575, Canton, OH 44708-0575. Renovating this building was his passion over the past many years.

Eulogy and Obituary for Joy Reed

PastorPartridge Eulogy , , , ,

Eulogy for Joy Reed

October 31, 2016

by Rev. John Partridge

 

From the stories I heard in the past few days, I think that with the loss of Joy Reed our world got a little less fun.  But before I get too far ahead of myself, let’s review a little.

Joy Price was born 84 years ago, graduated from Lincoln High School in 1950, and by all accounts, met the love of her life in third grade.  She and David were married on October 12, 1952.  Also playing into this story are the Genoa girls, some of whom I have met because several of them have attended, or continue to attend Trinity Church.  The Genoa girls are women like Joy, Audrey Fish, Pearl McKnight, and several others who have been close friends since first grade.  These women grew up together, vacationed together, raised their kids together and, in recent years, formed the ‘card club’ that met once a month.  On top of that, some of them are still going out to eat together on a regular basis.  Joy really liked to go out to eat.

Along the way, of course, David and Becky became a part of Joy’s story.  Becky remembered the family taking vacations together to Virginia Beach and Chesapeake Bay and other places but no matter what they did, or where they went, Becky said that Joy always had a way of making life fun.

But unlike the kind of fun we sometimes see, Joy didn’t just do things so that she could have fun, Joy did things so that everyone around her had fun.

And again, before I go any farther, I have to introduce you to Nellie Phelps.  Nellie was Joy’s best friend and they did everything together.  They worked together as the “lunch ladies” at Reedurban School and Joy worked for a while at Peifer School as well.  But whether they were at school or at church, or almost anywhere else, the two of them were almost always up to something.  Together they collected food for the food bank, organized funeral dinners at church, helped out at Vacation Bible School, (where Joy would do anything except teach), visited shut-ins, and more often than not, were working on a joke of some kind.

In one way, it’s a bit odd really, but in another it’s not.  I can’t really tell you a lot about Joy Reed without telling stories about Nellie Phelps.  They really were that close, and they really did that much together.  They were inseparable.  They did everything together.  Nellie would have ideas, and Joy would make them bigger.  The folks at church tell me that the two of them were an important part of the church.  They were in the women’s society together, and as I already mentioned, they did VBS together and volunteered to help with dinners, but they also created their own job description as church greeters.  At first, that doesn’t sound all that unusual except that the way Joy and Nellie did it wasn’t to greet people coming into church the way that everyone else did, they appointed themselves as the greeters for people coming out of church.  And they did it in such a way that everyone who came felt that they were really welcome.  In fact, when someone new came to Trinity, one of them, either Joy or Nellie, was sure to call them and invite them to come back.  We still have a number of people who became members of our church because of the work that these two ladies did.

Joy loved Halloween.  And, once again, that isn’t all that unusual, except that when you combine Joy’s love of Halloween, the way that she and Nellie played off of one another, and the way that they loved to help others have fun, what you end up with is a pair of ladies that can cause a bit of a stir.  These were the two who once dressed as clowns in the Hall of Fame parade and cleaned up behind one of the horse units.  I can only imagine.  They went to all of the Perry home football games together… with their cowbell… and they used it.  And everyone knew that they were there.  They tried hard to make every holiday at school memorable for the kids, and that included one Halloween when they somehow managed to get a real, full sized, coffin into the lunchroom at school… and then one of them hid in it… and in the middle of lunch the coffin began to open.  I’m told that they scared some of the kids half to death and the principle came to tell them that they might have overdone thing a little.  It didn’t matter.  There really wasn’t anyone that could stop those two once they got started.

But a big part of their focus was on doing things for other people.  They loved to serve others in whatever way they could.  Joy was a Girl Scout leader and together she and Nellie would go to the Hospitality House nursing home every week, for years, to play bingo with the residents there.  Every week they bought candy to give away to everyone and helped the folks who had trouble playing because of their eyesight or anything else.

Oh, and you remember the card club of the Genoa Girls that met once a month?  Every Halloween, Joy would dress up and go to lunch with her club in costume.  No one else did… just Joy.  But that’s just who she was.  However God arranged it with her parents, “Joy” was exactly the right name all along.

Audrey Fish was another one of those friends that Joy had forever.  They baked Christmas cookies together when their children were small, they saw each other every month at card club, and they saw one another every week at church.  But when Joy couldn’t come to church anymore, Audrey came to see Joy…  every week… for the last five years or so.

Joy just wanted to help.  She was a person who you could call to do almost anything.  I say almost, because there might just have been one thing that she wouldn’t do.  In a conversation at church one day, undoubtedly involving Nellie Phelps, they were talking about the houses that God has prepared for us in heaven and what a wonderful view there would be.  And, somehow, at that point someone thought that if there was such a great view, then there must be a lot of windows and, if there were a lot of windows, there must be someone to clean them.  So of course, Nellie suggested that this might be Joy’s contribution to the heavenly community… washing windows.  Joy was indignant and replied, “No! I’m not going to wash windows.  Not even for God!”  Everyone laughed and Nellie gently assured Joy that, for God, she probably would.

Joy loved to watch basketball, and Ohio State, and anything Perry whether it was sports, or theater or music, or anything else.  Joy was the kind of a person that everywhere she went, always made the people around her smile.  And even now, even in this time of sadness, the people that knew her can’t seem to remember her without smiling.  That is truly a gift that she has given to all of us.

As Becky said, Joy Reed had a way of making life fun.  She always had a smile and will be remembered by everyone who knew her for her sense of humor, her orneriness, warmth, friendliness, and her strong faith in Jesus Christ.  None of us have any doubts as to where she went the moment that she left her mortal dwelling place.  I am certain of her destination.  I am certain that Jesus and Nellie have given her a warm welcome.  I am sure that she is enjoying the view.

But I somehow doubt that she is washing windows.

 

 

Obituary

joy-reedJoy Reed (nee Price), 84, of Massillon, passed away October 27, 2016, at Meadow Winds Health Care Center. A lifelong resident of Perry Township, Joy made many waves throughout the community. She graduated from Lincoln High School in 1950, where she met David Reed, whom she was married to for 64 years on October 12, 2016.

Joy was employed with Perry Local Schools for 25 years as “the lunch lady.” Along with raising 2 children and her employment Joy still found plenty of time for her array of extracurricular events. She hosted parties for her card club friends, had lunches with her “Genoa Girls”, was active in both Cub Scouts and Girl Scouts and was president of the Richville School District PTA.

She was heavily involved in the Trinity United Methodist Women’s Club, where she selflessly worked to make sure ill members were provided with food and her ornery humor. After those long weeks with full schedules, you could be sure to find Joy and lifelong friend, Nellie Phelps at the Perry Panthers Football Games on Friday nights.

Joy is survived by her husband, David Reed; son David Reed; daughter Becky (Rick) Osborne; granddaughter Lindsey “sweetpea” Stephen; sister-in-law Gloria Deeser and special friend Audrey Fish.

Family and friends may call Sunday from 2 to 4:00PM at the Reed Funeral Home (CANTON CHAPEL) where services will be held Monday at 10:00AM with Pastor John Partridge officiating.

Interment will take place at West Lebanon Union Cemetery.

The family would like to extend a special thank you to the staff at Meadow Wind and Great Lakes for their love and support.