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.

Fickle Hand of Fate, Part the Third

The RV park/motel has laundry facilities, and Susan used them to wash the pukey clothes from yesterday's journey. My sister Sandy and I had gone to a convenience store last night to buy laundry soap as well as some orange juice and Pop-Tarts for today's breakfast. This morning, however, Dad sent Sandy, Susan, and the girls to McDonald's to buy breakfast for everybody. Outside that restaurant, Abigail vomited. They brought the food back to the motel, and we gathered at two picnic tables outside to eat. On my way out of the room, I slammed my finger in the door. This trip is cursed (see Parts the Second and First).

To review: we're here in Colorado Springs to attend a party to celebrate my aunt and uncle Rose and Elton's 50th wedding anniversary. Their children Randy, Renae, Johnny, and JoAnn (and spouses) organized the event and invited my sisters, Susan, and me to perform a song for the program at the party (we chose "Remember When," popularized by Alan Jackson). Wanting at least one rehearsal together before performing at the actual party, we got Renae's husband Steve to come to the motel and drive us to Johnny's house, where we got a tour before Johnny's wife Judy led us to the hall they reserved at Colorado College for the party.

On the way back to the motel afterwards, a jerk who performed an illegal traffic maneuver blamed the difficulty of carrying out that driving offense on my sister and let loose with some verbal road rage while we were all parked at a traffic light. However, that was the last of our bad luck for the day. We gussied up for the party, returned to the hall on campus, and had an absolutely wonderful evening. My sister has written about it here and here. Here are some additional photos:

Rose and Elton are clearly still in love after 50 years!

Dad's sister Rose

Rose and Dad's sister Penny

Dad

Dad, Penny, Rose, Elton, and Elton's brother Jerome

Rose with her and Dad's uncle and aunt Bert and Bea (Bea is sister to my grandma Olga, Dad and Rose's mom)

My sister Cathy, Dad, Beverly, Susan, me, my sister Sandy, and Hillary, Abigail, and Suzanna

Me and my girls!