death

A Eulogy

/ Shane / Leave a comment

My Aunt Sue wrote a eulogy for my Grandma, which was so much better than my own attempt. I felt like it really captured the essence of my Grandma. Anyway, here it is:

Mom was born to Bert & Elizabeth Tow, a twin to William. The twins were separated at an early age and my mother was raised by her fraternal grand-parents. When she was in her teen years she went back to live in Detroit with her parents and brother where she graduated from the Dominican high school. Upon graduating from a Catholic all girls’ school she thought she would go into the convent. Anyone who knows her will chuckle; someone who had 7 children certainly didn’t belong in a convent.

My mom & dad lived in several towns before settling down in Janesville. My mom took on several roles in her life, not only as mother to us but to several other children in the neighborhood. She was the disciplinarian as my dad worked 2 and 3 jobs to support our family. Mom tried to go to work for a little while outside of the home but that didn’t prove to be profitable. With 7 kids, it was hard to find a babysitter for that many children. My mom had to try to salvage some kind of sanity so she volunteered at Mercy Hospital as a (Pink Lady).

My parents were very proud people; they taught us a good work ethic, and how to love one another. They were proud that they never had bad credit, which was a worry my mom had till this day. My mom lived a long good life. She went more places, saw more countries than she had ever imagined. That in part was due to her children being sprinkled around the world at different times.

Talking with the Snyder girls in July and reminiscing about times when we were young and listening to how much my mom touched their lives, it makes one stop and realize how other people were touched by her kindness.

My mom told me one day that she made me into the person I am today and I guess that is a correct statement. For if it wasn’t the hard lessons I was taught, the parenting skills I learned, the kindness and love for my siblings and closeness of family, I would be a different person. We always knew that we were loved. My mom was a good story teller. She should have been a best selling author. Mom had a good sense of humor. Erin from Hospice tells me she was visiting my mom and she told her she had food on her chest, to which my mom replied, “I am saving some for later”. Just recently when it came time for the hospital bed, so it would make her life easier, she flipped flopped on wanting the bed. I asked her why and she said, “Because she didn’t want to die in a hospital bed; she wanted to tide in her own bed”. I told her we didn’t want her to die, so that’s why she was going in the hospital bed. She STUCK OUT HER TONGUE AT ME.  That meant to me that she really knew what was good for her but change was hard for my mom to accept. She hated to ask for help. She hated losing her independence but also was smart enough to realize what was in her best interest.

I am selfish and sad to let her go. But I know my mother was a Christian and a child of God. She will be in heaven and I will see her again when the Lord calls me home.

Let’s celebrate her life and share our memories and stories of BETTY JANE CATHERINE ANN ELIZABETH TOW HALBACH together.

I love you mom,
Susan Mullen

Bad Time of Year

/ Shane / 2 Comments

Unfortunately, another family member passed away. This is turning out to be a bad time of year.

This time it was my Grandma. Today would have been her 84th birthday. Instead of celebrating with a party, we are attending her funeral.

Grandma and Evie, in happier times

It was certainly not surprising, and we were all fortunate to have time to visit and say goodbye. In fact, people have been predicting her demise every day for at least 5 years now.

Aunt Sue: “I’m not really sure why she still hangs on.”
Me: “Are you saying she’s stubborn? Now there’s a shocker.”

If I had to describe my Grandma in one word, it would be fierce (and not in a Tyra Banks kind of way). Stubborn would certainly be fitting, but I think fierce is more accurate. A stubborn person doesn’t give up. A fierce person fights like a cornered badger. A stubborn person is solid, like stone. Grandma was full of fire.

When my Grandpa died, it was hard to imagine the family without him. However, Grandma took over as the matriarch of the family without missing a beat, keeping everybody in line. She was not a person who was afraid to tell you how she felt. Even towards the end, she didn’t miss anything. Because of her frail appearance, it was easy to forget that her mind was still as sharp as ever, until she would make a comment that was right on the money. I’m glad that she got to meet my kids.

I haven’t talked to anybody yet who wouldn’t agree that this was one of those situations where her death truly was a mercy. Being confined to a bed is no way to live, and even before that, she hadn’t been able to get around easily for a long time. Her health was on the decline for so long, and there really wasn’t much left to give.

So Grandma, we’re so sad that you’re gone, but we understand. I know how much you missed Grandpa, even after all this time. I know, in the end, he came to get you, just like you always said he would.

Rest in peace.

Betty J. Halbach, Janesville  (1928 – 2012)

January 20, 1928 – January 12, 2012
Betty J. Halbach, 83, of Janesville passed away Thursday, Jan. 12, 2012, at her home. Betty was born on Jan. 20, 1928, in Detroit, MI, the daughter of Elmer and Elizabeth. She graduated from Dominican High Academy in Detroit. She married Frederick W. Halbach on July 3, 1948. Betty was formerly employed as a teacher at St. Mary’s School, Janesville, then later worked at Fairbanks-Morse Company and the Janesville Janitorial Service. She later managed the Regency House Apartments in Janesville. She was a member of St. Mary Catholic Church, Milton.
Surviving are four sons and three daughters: William F. of Janesville, Susan (Terry) of Janesville, John C. (Sharon) of Warren, IN, James (Becky) of Hanover, David A. of Janesville, Mary of Janesville, and Cathy (Terry) of Janesville; 19 grandchildren and 24 great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Frederick, on June 12, 1997. Her parents and her twin brother, William, also preceded her in death.
“A special thanks to Agrace HospiceCare and Senior Services of Rock County for their many kindnesses to Betty and her family.”

The world is a little poorer today

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Sad news for the family this week; my Aunt Barb passed away. Aunt Barb has been a constant in the family for so long, always present at reunions, family gatherings, and, of course, Thanksgiving, even after health problems made that difficult. She provided warmth both figuratively and literally, with the many afghans she crocheted over the years (we have one on our bed right now, and several more around the house). So, goodbye Aunt Barb. Your absence will not go unnoticed.

If anything good can come from Aunt Barb’s death, it’s this: please consider becoming an organ donor. Aunt Barb lived with a transplanted liver for over 15 years. This extra time allowed her a chance to see her kids get established, watch her grandkids grow up, travel, and spend time with her husband after he retired. It bought her time, a lot of time, and there isn’t a price high enough to pay what that’s worth.

—

Barbara, age 61, of Janesville, died on Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011, at University of Wisconsin Hospital, Madison. She was born in Janesville on July 25, 1950, the daughter of Raymond and Geraldine. She graduated from Parker High School in 1968, and married Bernard in St. William Catholic Church on Feb. 22, 1969. She had been a Janesville resident all of her life and was retired from the Data Shop. Barb was a lifetime member of St. William Catholic Church, actively learning Braille, and attended support groups for transplant and loss of sight. She loved listening to books, doing cross stitch and crocheting.

She is survived by her husband, Barney; 3 children: Andrea, Mike and Charlene all of Janesville; 3 grandchildren: Brandon, Samantha and Calvin; 6 siblings: Mike (Donna) of Evansville, Kath of Janesville, Mary (Paul) of Janesville, Carol (Mark) of Milton, Donna (Stephen) of Texas and LuAnne (John) of Janesville; many nieces, nephews, other extended family. She was preceded in death by her parents.

Lasting memorials may be made to the University of Wisconsin Transplant Program, Madison.

She’s trying to make me cry

/ Shane / 1 Comment

Parents worry about things that kids just don’t think about. “Am I making the right decisions for my child?” or “Am I raising this kid right?” Being a parent involves a lot of uncertainty. I don’t know if children pick up on this, and thus know the weak points to prod at, or if they just ask so many questions that some of them are bound to hit below the belt.

For example, one thing on my mind a lot is the fact that raising our kids in Chicago, they are having a much different childhood than Sara or I had. In particular, we yearn for some sort of yard where the kids could go out and play.

Evie: “This is silly, but for the house, for my birthday, I wanna ask for a yard.”

Ouch.

However, lately it seems like Evie has been going for the jugular. It really seems like she’s going out of the way to try to make us cry.

Evie: “When I die, I want to bring mommy with me.”

Evie: “When I die, I want to die close to the house. Can you make me die close to the house?”
Sara: “Why do you want to die close to the house?”
Evie: “So I can see you again”

Evie: “When I die, will you let me take Oliver with me?”

Cue daddy with a lone tear dripping from his giant cartoon eyes while his bottom lip starts quivering.

She hasn’t really had any personal experience with death yet, but I assume that thinking about death probably normal at her age. It’s not like she thinks about it all day, but it does come up probably every other day or so.

The thing is, you just never want to think about death in conjunction with your child. This seems pretty obvious, but I can definitely say that, although you might think you understand, its something that you can’t really know until you have a child. How absolutely terrifying it is. And also strange to think, “I guess that means my parents felt that way about me too.”

Well, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about these things, since Evie keeps bringing it up!

Death of a Legend

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If you felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced, it was because something terrible has happened.

That’s right, Glen W. Bell Jr., the founder of Taco Bell, died.

Truly, a day that will live in infamy. And to anybody who says Taco Bell isn’t healthy? Dude was 86.