My Uncle Bill's wake was at the Jack Monreal Funeral Home On March 29th. Over 600 people paid their respects, many of whom are relatives. Just to mention a few people I hadn't seen in a while: my cousins Tim Fitzpatrick and Sheila Fitzpatrick; cousin Jerry Coughlin; cousin Sam Galioto; cousin Jill Charske and her husband Bill; Jack O'Donnell; Ellen McHugh--and so many more. An Irish wake is fun in spite of the sadness, in spite of the loss.
The beautiful funeral mass took place on Wednesday, March 30th at St. Mary Magdalene's in Willowick. Father's homily was so beautiful and so personal; it reminded me again (as if I needed reminding) how beautiful our church can be--and how we are best at celebrating life's passages. Following the burial at bitter cold All Souls Cemetery in Chardon, family and friends met again at the LaMalfa catering center in Mentor--and then it was over, the hard part. Luckily my brother Denny and his wife Sher were in town and we had quite a week with them.
I thank god for my Irish Catholic family and for the life of my Uncle Bill. Somehow we have to take on the joyful fun-loving spirit and deep faith that Bill had. We have to take care of Aunt Kay and help our cousins through this time of mourning.
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Regatta off Mentor Lagoons, Lake Erie
This blog is based in Northeast Ohio, what was "La Nation du Chat," the Cat Nation, as the French-Canadian furtraders called the Land of the Erie Indians. The blog will touch on many issues: nature, the environment, literature, poetry, society, and politics. Around here we think of the Lake Erie shoreline as the North Coast of the United States--a Frontier in the midst of the Rust Belt.
Sunset on Lake Erie
Regatta off Mentor Lagoons, Lake Erie
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About Me
- View from the North Coast
- I am a teacher of English and poetry as well as an intermediate learner of Irish, active in the Irish Language study group at the East Side Irish-American Club in Euclid, Ohio.