A Celebration of Lives

Last November, my aunt Rose passed away--and the next month, her husband, my uncle Elton, passed away, too. They were such a loving couple, married for 67 years and so caring toward one another, their own family, and all of us in their extended family. I have only fond memories of the two of them.

Rose and Elton lived in Colorado, as did most of their children and all their grandchildren. This weekend their kids and grandkids traveled to North Dakota for a memorial service for Rose and Elton in Battleview, where Rose and my dad (her brother) and their family first lived--and where Rose and Elton later were married.

Rose had let her kids know what she wanted at the funeral, and they honored her wishes. It was such a meaningful ceremony. Rose and Elton's kids are all great musicians, and they and some of their children provided all the music for the service. Each of Rose and Elton's kids spoke, too, sharing beautiful memories of their parents. It was all so touching and perfectly expressed just how great Rose and Elton were and what an impact they had on others.

After the service and burial in Battleview, we all gathered in Tioga at Neset Consulting, a business with a large community room that groups can rent for events. Regina Lalim from the Side Street Diner catered, so everyone could focus on visiting and catching up on one another's lives while sharing stories of Rose and Elton. It was not only a celebration of my aunt and uncle but also a demonstration of the closeness of our extended family.

(Click on any photo to enlarge it.)

Rose had six siblings, three of whom had already passed away. The remaining two are my uncle Alden (left) and my dad, Arlo (right). Next to Alden is my aunt Connie, widow of my uncle Ray. Next to Dad is his cousin Tammy, whose mom, Bea, was a sister to my grandma, Olga. (Also in attendance but not pictured: my aunts Goldie and Janet.)

My Moberg cousins: Rose and Elton's kids, nieces, and nephews. We were missing five: two who had earlier attended Rose and Elton's memorial service held in Denver, two who could not make it from out of state, and one who has passed away.

Rose and Elton's children and grandchildren except for one grandchild, his wife, and their child, who were not able to attend. In the front row are Rose and Elton's kids, my cousins Randy, JoAnn, Renae, and John.

Professional Musicians, Good Food, and Wine with Chocolate

No Scandinavian Saturday supper again this week!  Our day was just too full of other things to do.  Here were the three main events:

First, our entire family was hired to provide music for a wedding service this afternoon at a local Catholic church.  The bride's stepdad attends our church, at which her mom heard Susan and the girls sing one Sunday.  She recommended the ladies to her daughter, who came to our house one morning with her fiancé to hear them sing and to get ideas for song options (remember?).  I played the piano while Susan and the girls sang that day, so the bride and groom ended up asking us all to provide music today: I played piano for the service and accompanied Susan and the girls, who sang the songs for the wedding.  It was our daughters' first time as wedding musicians (and they got paid, too!), and it brought back memories of the hundreds of weddings for which my sisters and I sang, played piano, or played organ during our high school years.