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.

 

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.

 

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 Richard (Dick) Lewton

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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

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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.
 

Eulogy for Lila J. Graham

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Eulogy for Lila J. Graham

September 19, 2016

by Rev. John Partridge

Just a little more than a week ago, our friend Lila was doing fine.  But then she woke up in the hospital and everything started to unravel.  Every time we thought we had good news, more bad news seemed to follow.  Losing Lila was a surprise and even a shock to most of us but in addition, the events of the last week have been a startling reminder of our own mortality.  And so, as we gather together today let us not only mourn for what we have lost, but also find comfort in the knowledge that all of us who believe in him will one day be reunited in the loving arms of Jesus Christ.

Lila J. Graham was born on June 30th, 1933 in Cleveland, Ohio.  After she graduated from high school, she got work as a secretary adjutant for the United States Army ordinance office.  While at first this might have seemed to be a nice entry level job, it was also an appointment with her future.  Because, while this was happing in Cleveland, a young man named Marion Ray Graham (who always went by Ray and never by Marion) was growing up in Big Stone Gap, Virginia.  After his high school graduation he studied Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech and joined the ROTC which granted him a commission in the Army after graduation and assigned him to a duty station… at the Army ordinance office in Cleveland, Ohio.  After Ray and Lila met, Ray was sent to Korea in the day following the Korean Conflict and while he was gone, they corresponded regularly.  Lila’s daughters said that she had shown them stacks of letters they had exchanged while Ray was overseas.

After his return home, Ray and Lila were married on July 17, 1954.  During college, Ray had an internship with Timken and so after his service in the Army, he got a job there.  For three years the city girl and the country boy lived in Canton, but then they moved out of town to Perry Township where they stayed and raised their family for the rest of their lives.

Well, they did live in the same house for the rest of their lives, but using the word “stayed” might be a bit of an exaggeration.  You see, although their house was their home base, every year they would do a fair amount of traveling and Lila travelled more than Ray did.  Ray thought it was fine to travel to see family and so they alternated between Virginia and Cleveland at Christmas time, and every summer the family spent a week camping at Clay’s Park, and that was about it for Ray.  Lila on the other hand, loved going on an adventure.  She loved to travel and so, whenever she could, she would find a sister, or a friend, or someone, and go somewhere.  She literally travelled the world and Ray was fine with that as long as he didn’t have to go along.  But Lila did convince him to go overseas with her one time.

Lila also had other adventures closer to home.  She went out and did things with her kids and her grandkids whenever she could.  They went canoeing, visited haunted houses, and were regulars at Cedar Point’s annual Halloweekends.  Every year they visited the Yankee Peddler festival, attended the Christmas Carol at the Players Guild, and every Christmas season everybody came to Lila’s house for “Cookie Day.”  At Easter everyone colored eggs, and then followed the clues for her special treasure hunt where you might find Easter eggs, a few coins, and eventually an Easter basket.  You were never sure what you were going to find but you knew there was going to be an adventure.  There were big cookouts to attend every year too, one for fish, and another for ribs, as well as making a big deal for Mother’s Day.  And even before they started going to Halloweekend, they always had an annual outing to Cedar Point.  And, Lila being Lila (and we’ve already said that she loved adventure), she rode every ride in the park.  At age 75 she was still riding the Millennium.

And at every event, and at every adventure, Lila had a disposable camera and documented everything.  But it’s important to note that she didn’t just take pictures.  She took those pictures and kept a notebook for each of her grandchildren and carefully documented everything.

Once Ray and Lila were settled in Perry Township, Lila found work at the elementary school as a playground monitor, and then later was invited to become the “study hall lady” at Perry High School.  It was at Perry High School that Lila met Helen Bowman and the two of them have been friends ever since.  At church Lila did a little of everything.  She was the children’s choir director for 25 years, taught Sunday school classes of all ages, led Bible studies, cooked food, served on the scholarship committee, made the fun calendars for the UMW every February, organized the talent show for 15 years, and probably more things than most of us can remember.  And while they were all here, all of Lila’s kids got married at Trinity Church too.  Every Sunday, after church, the whole extended family went to Ray and Lila’s house for a big family Sunday brunch.

Lila was a big sports fan and she loved her Cleveland Browns.  Every game she would call Jeff at halftime to talk about why they were so bad this year, or why they missed that play, or wonder when they were finally going to get a decent quarterback, or whatever.  At one time or another, Lila babysat all of her grandkids two days each week and, as we have already determined, because she had the heart for adventure, there were lots of field trips.  Whenever she could, Lila spoiled her grandchildren to do death.  She was the kind of a person that could talk to anybody.  She loved to sing, she had a big heart and did things for just about everyone, she did her crossword puzzles every day, and whenever Hannah came over she loved to draw pictures and watch Rugrats (which Hannah liked but wasn’t allowed to watch at home).  Every week she went out to eat with her lunch buddies and every Saturday she went out with a group of ladies from Trinity Church.

Lila was always sending cards and letters to family and friends and wanted to make sure that everyone got mail and felt loved.  She was a beautiful woman inside and out, and if you look at her pictures, it isn’t hard to see why Ray Graham was attracted to her.  Lila was known by many of us to give the best hugs.  Whenever she saw me she made sure that I got one, and made sure that I didn’t forget.  Even during this past week, whenever I would visit her in the hospital, even when she was hooked up to a host of IV’s and had machines beeping around her, whenever she would see me Lila would throw her arms out as best she could to make sure that I gave her a hug.  Lila loved colorful things and fun things.  She has a couple ornamental, concrete deer in her front yard and at this point many of you are probably thinking that lots of people have those, but Lila’s are as different as she was.  Lila’s deer are not just your ordinary brown deer; hers are white, and green, and blue and all sorts of fun things.  And then there is her collection of animated, dancing, stuffed animals.  You know the ones, you’ve all seen them, the fish, frogs, deer, teddy bears and whatnot that sing and dance when you press the button.  Lila loved them all and, from what I’m told, owns just about all of them.  In fact, she told her family that the rabbit that sings “Some bunny loves you” was supposed to sing at her funeral.  I’m not sure if it made it here today or not.  And of course, Lila wore hats.  I’m told that Loretta Doll was the first one at Trinity to be known for wearing hats, but Lila did it too and she owned it.  There are several of us who have seen Lila out in public and almost didn’t recognize her because she wasn’t wearing a hat.

There was always a dog in Lila’s house and lately that dog has been her friend Foxy.  Foxy was always at Lila’s side except when she went to Virginia to visit Joe.  It wasn’t that Foxy couldn’t ride in the car, or that Lila wasn’t willing to take her, but it’s just that the building where Joe lives doesn’t allow animals.  And so, it came to pass that Lila’s friend Janet Miller became sort of a part owner of Foxy because Foxy would go to Janet’s house whenever Lila went to see Joe.  Naturally, even though we can all be pretty sure that Foxy was regularly spoiled by Lila, she complained that Janet spoiled Foxy even worse than she did.

As Lila began to spend time with Joe, the florist started to visit her more often.  It was nice, and it was different, because Ray had never had much use for flowers and never really bought them, but Joe like flowers and sent them often.  I’m told that the family began to notice that there was quite collection of flower vases that were accumulating in the basement, but no one really knew just how often it happened until this past week.  As people came to the house to express their condolences, the delivery driver from Pat’s Flowers stopped in too.  You see, he had come to Lila’s house so often that he and Lila had not only become acquainted, they had become friends.

Each one of us will remember something different.  We’ll remember hugs, and hats, some will remember field trips and adventures, little dogs, singing songs, her love of Jesus and her passion for his kingdom, we’ll remember adventures, and lunches, and talent shows and all sorts of things.  But the two inescapable things that every one of us will always remember is that Lila always had fun wherever she went, and that she had the remarkable ability to make everyone around know that they were truly loved.

If any of us can be half the person Lila was, we will surely be a blessing to others, because Lila was definitely a blessing to each and every one of us.

 

lila-grahamObituary

Lila J. Graham

June 30, 1933 – September 15, 2016

Lila J. Graham, 83 of Perry Township, passed away Thursday, September 15, 2016. Lila was born on June 30, 1933 in Cleveland, the daughter of the late Nelson and Edna (Osterland) Gilbert.

She worked at Richville Elementary and Perry High School retiring in 1992 after 28 years of service. She was an active member at Trinity U.M.C. where she taught Sunday School and Bible Classes, directed the Children’s Choir, and participated in U.M.W. Lila loved traveling and spending time with her family and friends.
Along with her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, M. Ray Graham in 2007; sisters, Dorothy Ward and Edith Loescher; and brother, Clark Gilbert.

She is survived by her daughters Amanda (Jeff) Fletcher and Amy (Gary) Ciesielczyk; grandchildren, Hannah and Audrey Fletcher, and Benjamin, Victoria, and Kari Ciesielczyk; and her special friend Joe Williams.

A Celebration of Lila’s Life will be held on Monday, September 19, 2016 at 11:00 a.m. at Trinity U.M.C. in Perry Heights. The family will receive friends at the Paquelet & Arnold-Lynch Funeral Home on Sunday from 2-5 p.m. and on Monday from 10-11 a.m. at the church. In lieu of flowers donations may be to Trinity U.M.C. in Lila’s name.

Readings

Lila carried this scripture in her wallet.  It isn’t one of the more common ones that people often carry.  It isn’t about love, or hope, but then, in a way it is.  And having read it, it’s exactly the sort of thing that Lila would’ve liked so we want to share it with all of you too.

Romans 8:35-39 –

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

This is one of Lila’s favorite poems.  It was on a plaque in her kitchen.  And again, for anyone that knew her, I think it’s exactly Lila.

Hugs

It’s wondrous what a hug can do!

A hug can cheer you when you’re blue.

A hug can say “I love you so” or

“Gee, I hate to see you go.”

A hug delights and warms and charms,

It must be why God gave us arms!

REMEMBERING LILA – by Janet Miller

 

Lila and I became such very good friends from working together at Trinity.   We soon realized we had a great many things in common…We were both born in the same year and in the same month and also had the same middle name.   She always told me I was older than her tho as there was 28 days difference…Our history and life style seem to have run parallel in our growing up years.   We both lost our husband and after that she joined our group of Trinity friends for Saturday nights out.   It was good to have friends to enjoy a meal together.

When Lila found life lonely she got herself a little 4 legged friend called Foxy.  Naturally as soon as I saw her I knew she was a special little girl.   Lila was good enough to let me be a part of Foxy’s life as well as Lila’s.    Then a short time later Lila and Joe became the BEST of friends.   She often traveled to visit Joe in Va. so Fox would stay with me.   She always told me this pup is really spoiled when she comes back from your house.    So I always told her, Well, you get spoiled by Joe so I get to spoil Fox….Lila was a special Christian, always ready to tell you about God and ready to lead any Bible study groups or the Sunday School Class we recently started.   She was not afraid to tell you how much God loves us all and to always remember, “God is in charge”.  She was so right about that.  God could see Lila was struggling to live alone and needed help.   We will all miss our dear special friend but we know God’s love will be waiting for her in a special place.   I will forever miss my special friend and soul mate, but I will have her little Fox to remind me of her and know she will be checking to be sure I don’t spoil her pup too much.    May God bless you on your next journey Lila.

With love,

Janet Miller

Eulogy and Obituary for Marland Gerber

PastorPartridge Eulogy , ,

Eulogy for Marland D. Gerber

August 03, 2016

by Rev. John Partridge

 

None of us expected this.

 

Of course we all know that none of us will live forever, but this is not where any of us planned to be a week or so ago.  When I heard that Marland Gerber had passed from this life and into the next, I was stunned.  I had just seen him at church recently.  He was doing better than he had been in months.  And so, just when we thought he was getting better, we got a phone call, or a text, that we didn’t expect.  But after the shock wore off, those of us who knew Marland realized one thing:

 

We are poorer today than we were last week.

 

As my wife and I met with the extended Gerber family Monday evening, we listened as, one after another, they told us what they remembered, and what Marland had meant to them.  The praise was abundant.  If he had been there, he would have been embarrassed to hear it, but it was all true.  Someone said that “Nobody laughs like Santa.”  He was described as loving, caring, always ready to listen, the best ever, amazing, a very hard worker, a man who always took pride in what he did, a man who lit up the room wherever he went, and more.  Marland was a giving person who was always ready to give what he had.  He tried to provide for everyone and make sure that no one wanted for anything.  He was willing to give the shirt off of his back, and sometimes he gave more than he could really afford.

 

Marland was also a lover in the best possible sense of the word.  He loved Eileen with all his heart and would anything for her.  He did give her a hard time for cooking too much, but didn’t complain when it was his turn to eat.  That love wasn’t just reserved for Eileen.  For Marland, every family member was unique and special and he had his own way to make every single one of them feel loved and valued.  He teased the younger kids by showing them his false teeth, told bad jokes until everyone had them memorized (ask any of them why God’s name is Andy), had pet names for some, asked about their lives, bragged about all of them, gave words of encouragement whenever they were needed but could give you a hard time of you needed that, and Marland showed up for everything.  For Marland, “family” was an event.  He took his grandkids on trips and made sure that they did things together and he came to their games.  Not just a few, but all of them.  Football games, baseball games, wrestling tournaments, dance recitals, you name it, if one of his family or friends were in it, he would do his best to be there to watch.  That dedication extended beyond his family, because over the years as he attended all of those games, he made friends with the other kids, their families, the coaches, and everyone else, so that even when his kids graduated and moved on, Marland was still going to those games to cheer on his new friends.  Of course it’s always more fun to watch when your team wins, and Timmy said that Marland absolutely lit up when the Perry wrestling team won two state finals.

 

But watching his family and friends wasn’t all that Marland did.  He loved sports.  All sports.  All the time.  I think I heard a rumor that since they heard the news, Sports Center is already warning people that they expect their ratings to be down.  It is fairly well-known that Marland liked to yell at the TV while he watched his games.  Often he was yelling at the guy with long hair and telling him that if he got a haircut he could run faster.  For the really big games, the seats in his living room were reserved and by invitation only.  If you weren’t invited, there’s a good chance that you would be asked to leave when the game started.  Aside from yelling at the television, because he knew so much about sports and cared so much about people, everyone in his family thinks that Marland would have made a great coach.  And it wasn’t just about sports on TV.  As I said, Marland supported a great many of the teams in Perry, but he and Eileen also bought season tickets to the Canton Charge games.  The funny thing is, the two of them make friends so easily, that after going downtown week after week, before long they made friends with the guy that gave away free stuff.  And then, pretty soon, instead of getting one towel, they got a bunch of towels.  Instead of getting one bobble-head, they came home with a box of bobble heads.

 

Wherever Marland went, he had friends.  Our church is full of his friends.  The Sugarcreek Methodist Church is full of his friends.  The Elks and the Eagles are full of his friends. And the entire campground at Atwood Lake is full of his friends.   When they heard that Marland had died, and that Eileen was at their camper, over a hundred people stopped by to pay their respects and express their condolences.

 

DJ put it this way: “He never had a bad thing to say about anyone and I would venture to say that no one could say a bad thing about him.  He would always greet people as if they were old friends.  He had a generosity of spirit that is rarely found in today’s society.  All were welcome at his table.  He was always such a giving man.  I am proud to have called him grandpa (poppy).  I will continue to strive to follow the example that such a great person has laid out for me.”

 

Marland called Denise (who he called Neesie) every Friday.  And every week he was genuinely interested in her life.  He would ask, “How are you?” “Where are you?”  And when he asked her, just as when he asked everyone else these sorts of things, you could tell that he really cared about the answers.

 

Among those gathered with the family on Monday night, were several people who are not, nor have they ever been, genetically related.  But at different times, for different reasons, under different circumstances, Marland and Eileen did what they have always done.  They loved people.  And along the way, these folks were just adopted into the family and accepted and one of their own.  For them, Marland and Eileen became their parents.

 

I told you at the beginning that Marland was a lover in the best sense of the word.  He loved people.  He loved hugs. It was hard for us to watch the pain that he was enduring for the last few years, but he never made an issue of it.  He didn’t get grumpy or lash out at people because he cared about them more than he cared about himself.  The other night someone said that he would never talk back, even in his own defense, because he didn’t want to hurt someone else.  Instead of getting angry, he just got hurt that other people were so wounded that they had to lash out at others.  And so his way of making them feel better, was just to take it without fighting back.  As a result, someone at the campground told one of his kids, “Your dad taught me how to be a man.”

 

And so after the shock wears off, those of us who knew Marland realized something.

 

We are poorer today than we were last week.

 

But that isn’t all that there is.

 

 

Marland Gerber was a lover in the best sense of the word.  He loved his family, he loved his friends, and honestly, I think he loved almost everyone.  I’ve shared a lot of things this morning, but the thing that ties them all together is love.  The thing that we will all remember, the thing that made Marland so special, is that everywhere Marland went, he made the people around him better than they were before.

 

We are better than we were before… because we were loved by this special and unique man.

 

And because of that, although we are poorer than we were last week, we are all extraordinarily rich.

 

—————————-

 

Obituary

Marland D. Gerber

September 16, 1938 – July 30, 2016

 

Marland D. Gerber 77 of Massillon and formerly of Sugarcreek died Saturday, July 30, 2016 at Union Hospital unexpectedly. He was born September 16, 1938 in Walnut Creek to the late Ura and Mary (Weaver) Gerber.

 

He retired from Andreas Furniture in Sugarcreek in 1999 after 32 years. He was a member of the Sugarcreek United Methodist Church for over 40 years before becoming a member of Trinity United Methodist Church at Massillon. He was a member of Aerie of the Elks 510 in New Philadelphia and the Eagles 2370 in Canton.

 

He enjoyed spending most of his time at Atwood Lake-surrounded by his wife, family and friends; especially his close friends Joe and Denise Mutchler and Bobbi Ries. He cherished nothing more than the company of his 6 grandchildren, 5 great grandchildren. He loved all sports, whether he was able to attend them in person or watching on TV.

 

He is survived by his wife, the former Eileen Doney whom he married on August 2, 1958; his two children Marla (Tim) Armstrong of Massillon and Rick (Trish) Gerber of Sugarcreek, 6 grandchildren Tara (Brandon) Lilly of Streetsboro, Dawn (Kenneth) Boudrie of Massillon, Jonathan Gerber of Sugarcreek, DJ (Stacy) Digianantonio of Alliance, Jeremy Gerber of Sugarcreek and Timmy Armstrong of Massillon, 5 great grandchildren Tyler, Austin, Lucas, Gianna and Conner and was looking forward to the arrival of his newest great grandson. In addition to his parents he is preceded in death by his sister Rhea Winkler.

 

Services will be held on Wednesday, August 3, 2016 at 11:00 AM at Smith-Varns Funeral Home 115 Andreas Drive in Sugarcreek with Pastor John Partridge officiating. Friends may call on Tuesday 2-4 and 6-8 PM at the funeral home. Memorial services will be conducted by the Elks Lodge from New Philadelphia on Tuesday at 8:00 PM at the conclusion of calling hours.

Smith-Varns
330-852-2141
www.smithfuneral.com

Remembering Gina P. Calvaruso

PastorPartridge Eulogy ,

Eulogy for Gina P. Calvaruso

April 08, 2016

The eulogy for Gina Calvaruso was given by her friends and family.  Many came to the front or stood where they were and shared their memories of Gina.  In this space I can only share a few that were written and given to me.

 

From Gina’s brother, Joseph Calvaruso

Even at a young age, Gina was adventurous. Being 3 years younger than her brother Joey, she was obviously not allowed to go everywhere he could. For example, as a 4 year old she was not allowed to leave the block where Joey being 7 could go much further. Inevitably – even after being told to stay close to home – she would be seen following and would show up wherever Joey and his older friends were. Of course a parent would eventually come and retrieve her.

She was an expert at finding where her Christmas gifts were hidden – unwrapping and playing with them – and wrapping them again and acting surprised on Christmas morning. She finally figured out she could also play with Joey’s gifts also, thereby doubling her pre-Christmas enjoyment.

She was very active in the high school band and was selected to be one of the bandleaders. Her friends from band were always at our home. She took piano and guitar lessons at a young age and played a few different instruments.

 

From her friend Sharon Capporelli

Just recently, Gina received a small settlement for an injury to her leg.  She had a thoughtful debate about her need to give 10 percent to the church, or could she give it anywhere of her choice?  In the end, she chose to give it to the poor.  She thought that the poor don’t have help to feed their animals (pets). And so she spent her 10 percent on cat and dog food and made it available to those in need.

Gina always wanted to talk about you.  It was difficult to turn the tables and get her to talk about herself.

When she would give you a gift, it was like she listened to every word that you said.  She knew exactly what to give that would be the most meaningful.  It was an uncanny ability.

She was a very non-judgmental person.  She had strong opinions but you could have yours if they differed.  Until you talked about her Hillary Clinton.

Gina was engaged in her friendships.  She always went the extra mile to keep you on your feet.  She would leave an empty Coke container in your mailbox or in your bushes.  I would find knick-knacks turned upside down or pictures facing backwards, or her straw paper floating in my drink.

She would go to many movies then she would rate them.  Tell her friends which ones to see.  She referred to herself as the “activities coordinator.”

Gina was a unique character.  She was ever present.  Willing to participate, seeking to be a part of the world as she understood it.

She experienced a lot of hardships and I watcher her change to the tune of each one.

She so wanted to be loved.  Like us all.

 

Obituary

Gina P. Calvaruso

March 12, 1957 – March 22, 2016

Gina P. Calvaruso, 59, passed away March 22, 2016. She was born Akron, Ohio to the late Irene T. and Joseph A. Calvaruso. She was a graduate of Garfield High School (1975) and the University of Akron.

Gina is survived by her brother, Joe (Gail) Calvaruso; nieces, Niki (Joey), Laura, Aly and dear friend, Sharon Caporali.

A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, April 8, 2016 at Trinity United Methodist Church, 3757 Lincoln Way E, Massillon, Ohio. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to a charity of your choice.