Grandma Funk

My Grandma Funk passed away February 1. 

She was born Dorothy Stephens July 12, 1924.  She grew up in Vermont as an only child.  She met my grandfather and they got married in 1945.  They stayed in Vermont and raised 7 children. They had 8 grandchildren and now a total of 3 great grandchildren with more to come.  My grandpa passed away in November of 2002.  She survived without him for over 10 years. 

She was Catholic and loved mass.  She loved to dance.  The last time I took the boys to see her was November 2012.  We were leaving a restaurant and Connor started dancing.  She giggled and starting dancing with him.  At 89 years old, 5 months after breaking her hip, she was dancing... and giggling.  She loved to chat.  She would talk and talk in a voice that was just above a whisper.  She loved sending and receiving cards and notes.... she never forgot a holiday or a birthday until a couple of years ago.  She loved to blow kisses.  She would blow kisses and wave over and over again.  In Daniel's words, "she was one of the nicest sweetest people I ever knew."

I went to see her with my mom a couple of days after she had an emergency surgery on a cancerous tumor in her intestine in January.  She was not supposed to survive the surgery...  but she did.  The first couple of days were really hard.  It did not look like she was going to make it through the day.  The third and final day we were there, she made a turn for the better.  She smiled, blew kisses.  She sat in a chair and wanted to stay there instead of getting back in bed.  She was fighting. 

There was a moment that third day.  The moment that I will always remember my grandma by.  They were moving her and she was crying and moaning in pain.  I looked at her and said "grandma it is going to be okay."  She opened her eyes, looked straight into my eyes and calmed down.  It was amazing.  I feel like, even if it was just a small moment in her 89 year journey, I helped her. 

A couple of days after we left, it got pretty bad.  She was sedated and put on life support.  She fought to get well enought to breathe on her own so she would not have to die with a ventilator down her throat.  Within a couple of days, she passed.  And from what I have heard, she fought hard to stay alive and take those last breaths.  And from those that were with her when she passed, it was an amazing and beautiful thing to see. 

Here are some of the more recent pictures of my Grandma Funk:

Family Portraits November 2011

Grandma and my boys

After lunch March 2012

at my wedding dancing to "we are family"

Her family... all of her children, their spouses, most of the grandchildren and all of the great grandchildren

This was the last time the boys saw their great grandma in November 2012.  This was before the lunch where I saw her dance and giggle for the last time.

It has been almost a month since she passed, and I am still crying as I type this post.  I know that the day she entered into Heaven, my grandfather was waiting and her patted her on the butt as her took her out onto the dance floor so they could finally dance together again. 

Sometimes when you are growing up, you do not realize how wonderful and strong and beautiful the people in your life are.  My grandma was all of those things.  She came into my dreams shortly after she passed and said goodbye to me.  I believe in that sort of thing. 

Her services will not be until May... she is being buried in Vermont and they do not have burial services in the winter.  I have until then to perfect anything I might want to say in public or private to my grandma.  I know that it will include how much I love and admire her. 

I will miss her.  RIP Grandma Funk.