Muriel Faye Hruska

Faye was born in Davenport, Washington, northwest of Spokane, on May 18, 1927. She was the second youngest of eight children born to Gilbert Ross and Dora Hendricks Green. Faye is preceded in death by her husband of 72 years, Clarence J. Hruska, her parents, brothers; Wesley, Milton, Dale and sisters; Ruth Green Tarbert, Edna Green Reitmeier, Bessie Green Johnson and Allene Green. She is survived by her children Dennis C. Hruska (Mukilteo), Pamela J. Hruska (Mercer Island), Kay L. Smith (Woodinville), Curtis R. Hruska (Cloverdale, CA) and three loving grandchildren; William Hruska, Matthew Smith and Nathan Smith. Faye was 94 years old when she passed early in the morning on December 20, 2021. She died very peacefully at Virginia Mason Hospital with her children by her side, after a year-long battle with lung cancer. She was showered with love and returned that love until her final breath.

Faye spent her early years on a 160-acre farm 12 miles north of Davenport, which raised animal stock, fruit from a diverse orchard and was home to many family enterprises. The farm demanded that everyone contribute, and Faye was no exception. Even at a young age she herded cattle, goats and picked fruit when it became in season. Faye attended local schools and was an active member in her community organizing and participating in Grange, church and school events as a young lady. She graduated from Davenport High School (go Gorillas) in 1945. Not surprisingly, Faye kept close contact with her fellow classmates for the next 70 plus years and always enjoyed reliving good times they all had together.

Faye lost her parents when she was a young teenager. After high school, Faye stayed with her sister Bea in Idaho and took training to become a licensed beautician. Faye worked alongside Agnes Hruska Bixby and Florence Cole Hruska at the Peacock Beauty Salon in Nampa, Idaho. Agnes and Florence just happened to have a brother named Clarence. Faye and Clarence met and the rest, as they say, was history. Following his WWII service, Clare and Faye dated for a few years and were married on September 13, 1948. They remained happily married for the next 70+ years until his death in 2020.

Faye helped Clare build their first home in north Seattle after his Korean service and while Clare attended UW. They finished just in time to welcome their first child, Dennis, in 1953. Pam was born in 1955 followed by Kay in 1956. The family moved to New Jersey for a short time in 1960 to follow Clare’s work at AT&T, returning to Woodridge, in Bellevue, Washington in 1962. In Woodridge, Clare and Faye were very active with family, civic and social activities and became well loved by the residents in Woodridge. During this time a fourth child was born; Curtis Ross Hruska in 1963.

A second work-related move back to New Jersey occurred in 1968 where the family took up residence in the historic town of Basking Ridge. Faye was totally devoted to her family and kept up the pace with grade school, middle school and high school kids all at once.

Clare, Faye and family returned to the Pacific Northwest in 1972 where they built a house on Mercer Island. That home served to host marriages, reunions, distant family visits, even a few long-term family visitors who were launching careers and lives in the Seattle area. Faye welcomed each event and delighted in giving a helping hand.

Clare retired in 1985 which ushered in a new set of opportunities for the pair. Faye and Clare liked to travel and spent many winter months snow birding in the Southwest USA, exploring the territory, gambling in Nevada (a Faye favorite) and enjoying the warmth of the weather and time with their many friends and family in the area. Together they bought an Airstream trailer and loved to just explore and be “off the grid”.

Faye also liked Hawaii and European travel. Hawaii provided the warm weather and the vivid blue seas were particularly welcome in the month of March. Maui was Faye’s favorite destination. She loved to shop at the outdoor markets, have lunch overlooking the ocean or just read a book in the serenity of Island life. They followed this ritual for over 30 years.

Faye and Clare were able to reestablish family ties in Europe, where they visited old homestead sites and met long lost family members in Czechoslovakia. Clare spoke Czech, so they were able to get around very well and enjoyed all the hospitality their family offered.

Faye was an accomplished Genealogist and traced three family lineages; her father’s family tree to 1794, Clare’s father and mother’s family tree back to 1773. She published three books outlining the births, deaths and intervening lives of each family member. These resources have proven to be invaluable to the younger generations who want to know more about their family background.

Faye also loved to sew. She provided each of her children with hand sewn quilts that are cherished by each of the kids. She could sew practically anything including tents, sleeping bags, winter coats and countless Halloween costumes and outfits for the family. Her designs were clever, and her execution was professional.

Faye was a devoted wife, mother and dearly loved all of her family. She was quick to smile and laugh and was always caring for those around her. Her departure leaves a huge hole in our lives, but we will always keep her memory close in our hearts.

Faye will be buried beside her beloved husband at the Sunset Hills Memorial Park in Bellevue, Washington. Clare and Faye are together once again watching over us.

Below is Faye's Autobiograhy:

Muriel is a girl’s name of Irish origin meaning “of this bright Sea”.

Muriel Faye Green was born to Gilbert Ross Green and Dora Hendricks Green on May 18, 1927 in Davenport, Washington. She was the seventh of eight children in the family and thoroughly enjoyed her early years with her brothers and sisters living on a ranch located about 12 miles north of Davenport, Washington.

I had strong memories of my life on the 160 acres spread. We didn’t have much money but there was always something to do to make our lives busy and enjoyable. We always had plenty of chickens, milk cows, horses and pigs to take care of. It was my job to gather the eggs and sometimes the old hens did not appreciate this, as they wanted to sit on the eggs to hatch little ones. They would let me know this by giving me a hard peck on the hand with their beaks. Luckily this didn’t happen often, and they would usually let me reach under them and gather the eggs with no problem.

My older brothers and sisters would milk the cows, as they had more strength in their hands. I stood by and watched and visited with them as they worked. Sometimes I would have the job of herding the cows by taking them to a place where there was plenty of green grass for them to eat. I needed to keep them out of the road, so they were safe from cars, and off the neighbor’s property. I would usually herd the cows from about 8:00 AM until noon. I always looked forward to the cows laying down and resting for a while. Then I could relax and do what I wanted to do. I could tell the time of day by the sun and my shadow and bring the cows home at noon.

We usually had three work horses to help with the farm work. They were not good riding horses and we had no saddles to make them more comfortable for riding, but once in a while we would ride them for fun. The Bouncer Boys that lived about one-and-one-half miles from us gave me a cute Shetland pony, which I dearly loved. I tried riding him several times, but he wasn’t very nice to me and would keep going back and forth under the clothesline and I would have to lay down on his back to keep from being beheaded. One time, brother Milton was riding one of the work horses and I was on the pony. We were going down a hill having great fun when my pony decided to have a little fun himself and gave a buck that sent me right over his head. From that point on, my horseback riding days were over... I gave the pony back to the Bouncer boys.

Our pigs provided the family with bacon, ham and pork. We would usually butcher two a year. The meat would be hung in the smoke house and cured until it was ready to eat. As we had no electricity or refrigeration, smoking was the only means we had for preserving the meat.

One of my favorite animals on the farm was a goat that I used to play with. Our house had low windows and we would run around the house with the goat trying to catch us. On our way around, we would jump through the window and the goat would keep on going around the house trying to find us. We didn’t feel sorry for him as he was kind of a naughty goat and would do unforgivable things. For instance, on Sunday mornings, we would have Sunday School at the grange hall across the road from our home. On that day, two neighbor ladies would always walk over the hill and through our pasture to attend and would enjoy visiting with each other on the way. We could hear them coming through the field, and the goat could hear them too. He delighted in meeting them halfway and would chase them, keeping right on their heels, to the grange hall door. One time he chased them right into the hall. Needless to say, we had to put a stop to that.

Another time, a man stopped at our place to ask directions to Kettle Falls. He had no more than stopped his car when the goat jumped on the running board, fender, hood and on top of the car before we knew what was happening. He apparently liked it up there as my Dad had quite a time getting him down so the man could be on his way. We didn’t keep the goat long after that, he was too embarrassing for us.

We were very fortunate to have many fruit trees on the property. We had several pear trees, some cherry and apples of all kinds, which we harvested and stored in a cellar so we could eat apples all winter. The crab apples made delicious jellies and people would come for miles to get their supply for jams and jellies. The ground was very fertile, and we had big vegetable gardens to provide us with plenty of good food for most of the year. The potatoes, carrots and onions were all stored in the cellar for the winter. The corn, beets, beans, etc. were canned in quart jars and also stored in the cellar. Needless to say, there was always something to do on the farm.

Our social life was centered around the North Star Grange. We would have grange meetings twice a month and it was great getting together with all of our neighbors to catch up on what was happening. They always had a program put on by members of the grange, and plenty of good food to eat. One time, when it was my turn to entertain, I was going to sing a song about a dog named ‘Old Shep’ and brother Milton was going to accompany me on the harmonica. Milton was nervous and started blowing into the back of the instrument instead of the keys, which drew a chuckle out of the crowd. We finally got things straightened out and the rest of the performance went well.

On the other two weekends of the month, the grange held public dances and they were always a huge success. An orchestra was hired for these dances, tickets were sold at the door, and people came from far and wide to attend and have a good time. We all loved to dance.

My formal education started when I was 6 years old. I was excited to be riding the school bus the 12 miles to Davenport to attend grade school. My First-grade teacher was Miss Parson. She was still teaching first grade when I graduated from High School 12 years later. She was an excellent teacher and we all enjoyed her. There were several of the children in my class that went to school together for the entire 12 years. We all look forward to the class reunions we have every five years to keep in touch with one another. I graduated from High school in 1945.

My grandmother (Melcena Frances Hendricks) lived with our family on the ranch in her later years. My father added a room to our house for her so she could have a room for herself. She developed double pneumonia and after a short illness died on Christmas evening, December 24, 1934 at the age of 78. She is buried in Cheney, Washington.

We were fortunate to have our Green Grandparents close by in Davenport, Washington and enjoyed seeing them often. We frequently went on fishing outings with them. I loved to stay overnight in their home and snuggle down in the feather comforter that Grandma always had on the bed. My Grandfather was a photographer and was always taking pictures of us whether we liked it or not. Eventually his eyesight started to fade, and he was unable to do some of the things that he dearly loved to do.

I know that I have told this story many times, but I still get amused just thinking about it. Grandpa used to play the violin very softly and sweetly. He said that was the way music was supposed to sound and the music we listened to as kids sounded like a bunch of drums and was not easy to listen to. One day, I was visiting grandpa and Uncle Clark and we were sitting around the heater stove talking, when my grandfather got up to add more wood to the fire. His eyesight was bad and he picked up his violin bow, thinking it was just a sick of wood, broke it over his knee and threw it in the fire. I didn’t know if I should laugh or cry.

My little world started shattering when I lost my grandmother Alice Ann Green to cancer on May 1, 1940. She died at age 82 in her home in Davenport and was buried in Spangle, Washington. She was missed greatly by those she left behind.

When I was 15 years old, I had the misfortune of losing my father to cancer also. He died in our grandfather’s home on April 2, 1942 with mother and all of his children by his bedside. He was only 63 years old and suffered terrible pain at the last. In those days they didn’t have the painkillers they have today to help make their lives more comfortable. He is buried in Davenport, Washington.

After his death, Mother, brother Dale and I moved off the ranch to another place called the Thompson place. We found it awfully lonely there and Mother would be alone all day while we were at school. We had no telephone and no way to communicate if she needed help, so we decided that a move into the little town of Davenport would be best. In town, she would be close to old friends and family. Dale moved to a neighbor’s place that was located just out of town. He liked it there as it was close to a good fishing hole and he loved to fish.

Mother and I moved into a small two-bedroom house, which was more to our liking. I found employment at Bergan’s grocery store during the summer months to help out with expenses. I hadn’t worked there very long until I received a telephone call for me to hurry home as something had happened to my mother. I ran all the way home only to find my mother lying on the davenport. She was paralyzed and a neighbor lady was with her. I called the doctor and he was there in minutes, he helped carry mother into the bedroom. She was a heavy person and it wasn’t easy to move her, we had to lay her down on the floor to get a better hold on her. The doctor took me aside and told me I would have to quit school and take care of her and that there was no medication she could take at this time to help. I was broken hearted at this point and called Ruth and Phil and told them Mother’s condition. I also called sister Bea who was living in Stibnite, Idaho and asked her to come home. Mother never regained her faculties and died two days later on July 5, 1944 at age 54 with her children at her bedside. She is buried in Davenport beside my father.

After the funeral, sister Bea asked me to go back to Stibnite to spend the rest of the summer with her and then come back to Davenport to finish my senior year of high school. I was glad to get away from all the sadness and enjoyed my summer in Stibnite, where I met many new friends and enjoyed just being with Bea. We lived in an apartment in the hospital as Bea was on 24-hour call and she had to be close for her work. There were a lot of kids my age and we enjoyed doing things together. We went to the movies together, attended dances, went fishing and other things that teenagers enjoyed. The summer went by so fast and before I knew it, I was headed back to school. I stayed with Ruth and Phil Tarbert during my senior year and graduated from high school in 1945 from good old Davenport High - home of the Gorillas. That was a big time for me.

I realized that I would have to do something soon to make a living for myself, as I could not depend on other people. I decided to go to a beauty school in Nampa, Idaho because Bea was working in Nampa and she wanted me to stay with her until her husband (Darrel Johnson) came home from the service. I enrolled in the Peacock Beauty School in Nampa and joined Agnes Bixby and Florence Cole Hruska in learning the tricks of the hair trade. It took me well over a year of book learning and practice before I traveled to Pocatello, Idaho to take the state board exam and get my license to practice in Idaho. It seemed great to draw my first paycheck and to be on my way. I worked in several different salons in Caldwell, Nampa and Notus, Idaho.

By this time, Bea’s husband, Darrel, was getting discharged from the service and Bea and I drove to San Francisco to meet him and bring him back to Nampa. It was a fun trip for me and a glorious time for Bea and Darrel to finally be together again and to have the war behind them. They decided to move back to Stibnite, Idaho, where Darrel worked in the mines and Bea was head nurse in the hospital. She loved her work there. This meant that I would have to find a different place to live and rentals were quite difficult to find. I tried several different places to live but was unhappy with all of them until I found a room in the private home of Mrs. Witherspoon. Mrs. Witherspoon was in her late sixties and her mother, Mrs. Nott, was nearing ninety years of age. They were both so sweet and treated me like their daughter. I was happy living with them and stayed there for the rest of my time in Nampa.

I met Clare in 1946 when he came home from his service duty of World War II.

It was a Saturday night and we were all going out for a fun evening when Agnes Hruska Bixby introduced me to her brother, Clarence. If I remember correctly, we didn’t pay much attention to each other then, but a few days later he came knocking on my door and asked if I would like to go out for a drink. Realizing all of a sudden that I was awfully thirsty, I accepted his invitation and we had a nice evening together.

Those days were happy times for nearly everyone, with the war being over and all the men coming home from their tour of duty. There was a lot of partying and celebrating with the guys happy to be home, and the gals happy to have them home.

Clare and I dated for nearly two years, he was doing work around the Nampa area and attending the College of Idaho. I was still working at the Peacock Beauty Salon in Nampa, Idaho. In 1948 Clare enrolled in the University of Washington and, as we wanted to be together, we decided it was time to get married and settle down. We were married on September 13, 1948 at 9 AM at St. Paul Catholic Church in Nampa, Idaho with Father McShane officiating and Jim and Georgean Hruska in attendance. I was twenty-one years of age and Clare had just turned twenty-three. Following the Wedding, we took all our close relatives and Father McShane to a reception luncheon at my favorite restaurant. That evening we had a dance at the Leagant Chaute in Nampa. I was so pleased that my sister Edna and husband Oscar, and sister Bea and husband Darrel could be present for the wedding and attend all of the festivities.

Clare and I spent about four days in Nampa before leaving for Seattle and the University of Washington. I was in awe of the big city, which was much larger than any place I had ever lived in.

Our first chore was to find a place to live that was near to the University and on a bus line. Rentals were very hard to come by, but we finally found a basement room with a bath, no frills like a kitchen etc. I cooked on a hot plate and washed the dishes in the bathroom sink. Our landlady was blind with a mental condition, which made our lives a little unsettled, but we managed to stay there during our first year at the University.

I didn’t have a license to practice beautician work in the State of Washington, so I had to resort to other work until I could take the state exam. I worked a short time in a spinach cannery but soon realized that the cannery work was not for me. I just hated to stand in water all day as I washed and inspected all the leaves that came down on the conveyor belt. I then took a job at the National Biscuit Company and learned the process of making cracker cartons. I worked hard at this job. The girls I worked with were fun to be with and we had a good time. I worked there until they closed the factory down and moved everything to Denver.

By this time, Clare was called into the service once again, this time for the Korean tour. We moved to Bremerton, Washington, where he was stationed and rented a cute little one-bedroom house. I enrolled in a beauty school there to study for the State Exams, which were held later in Spokane. For the exam, I had to have a model to work on and asked sister Allene to do me the favor. She thought that it would be great to get a free shampoo and hair style, manicure, facial, etc. When it came to the haircut, I was nervous and started to cut a little deep I’m afraid, cutting more off than I intended. I got a high score on the haircut but poor Allene didn’t have much hair left. She eventually forgave me.

I worked as a beautician in Bremerton until Clare was discharged from the Korean tour in January of 1952. We moved back to Seattle and found housing in the Cedar Vale housing project that housed a lot of the University students. Clare started his Junior year at the University of Washington. This was a very busy time for us with Clare carrying a heavy load towards his Engineering degree. Plus, we decided to buy a lot from our good friend, Harold Apted, and started building our first home.

At this time, I also became pregnant with Dennis and he joined us on May 15, 1953 just after we moved into our finished house in Lake City. Clare was just completing his Civil Engineering studies and was in the middle of final exams when we brought the baby home. Needless to say, Clare had a little trouble studying for finals when Dennis was crying and interrupting his chain of thought. We all lived through it though, and Clare graduated with his Civil Engineering degree and Dennis turned out to be a happy boy.

Our lives in our new home were happy ones with wonderful neighbors. Most of them were young adults raising their families, which offered lots of playmates for our children. We were also blessed with two daughters while living in our first home. Pamela Joy was born on March 29, 1955 and Kay Louise was born on August 25, 1956. We enjoyed our three little bundles of joy and they kept me plenty busy most of the time. Their dad had fenced in the back yard and equipped it with a swing-set and slide and sandbox to keep them busy. It was a nice feeling to know they were secure there and I didn’t have to worry about them - except when the neighbor kids would open the gate to the back yard and let our children out to roam the neighborhood.

Dennis started First grade at the John Rodgers Elementary School, which was within walking distance from our house.

We suffered the loss of our fourth child on February 29, 1960 – a baby boy that was stillborn. He is buried in the Calvary Cemetery in Seattle, Washington. While I was recovering in the hospital from the loss of the baby, Clare broke the news to me that we had been transferred to AT&T in New York City and they wanted him to leave within a few days to get grounded on his new job. We called sister Ruth and asked if she could help out until Clare returned home from New York and I could get back on my feet again. She was very helpful to us at that time.

We were all excited about our move to the big city of New York but had a lot of work ahead of us before we could move. We got the house ready for sale. Clare had to go back to New York to work and to look for a new home for his family. I stayed behind to sell the house in Seattle and let Dennis finish his first year of school. In June of 1960 we were on our way to the big city.

Clare had purchased a split-level home for us in Fanwood, New Jersey in a very friendly neighborhood with plenty of young ones for our children to play with. Dennis, Pamela and Kay were enrolled in an elementary school that was within walking distance of our house and adjusted well to the new environment. Clare took the train and ferry to his work at AT&T in New York and I joined a women’s bowling group and played pinochle with the neighbor ladies among other things. We took advantage of our weekends to sightsee and study the many places of interest on the East Coast.

In March of 1962, Clare received his orders to report back to the Seattle area for a job with Pacific Northwest Bell. This meant once again we had to sell the house in Fanwood, New Jersey and buy one in the Seattle area.

We purchased in a new development called Woodridge and bought one of the first homes being built there. We lived in a motel until the house was ready to move into. After we were settled in, we then tackled the job of landscaping the ground and planting shrubs and will say that it looked nice when we were finished. Our lives were very busy at Woodridge as the children were involved in many activities such as Boy Scouts, Campfire girls, and they were all on the swim team, which meant early morning practices every day. Clare was president of the swim club, which was time consuming, and we were the PTA presidents for the elementary school. For fun, Clare and I joined a dance club and enjoyed the dances once a month. We also belonged to a bowling league and bowled once a week.

Curtis Ross joined us on August 24, 1963 and it was like a new toy was brought into our lives. Curtis was a happy baby and we all loved to play with him and spoil him a little.

We bought our first travel trailer while on Woodridge, but we were unable to use it a great deal before being transferred again, this time to Bell Labs in New Jersey in August of 1967.

Once again, we were faced with the task of getting a home ready for sale and moving across the country to our new home in Basking Ridge, New Jersey. I loved the house we bought there and the neighbors and many children, who soon became fast friends with our children.

Once again, we became a very busy family with the many activities the children were involved in, such as football, school theater, music lessons in voice and piano, cheerleading, and snow skiing. Dennis graduated from Basking Ridge High School in 1971 and went on to higher learning at Washington State University (WSU) in Pullman, Washington where he received his undergraduate diploma in Business in 1975. In 1991 Dennis received his master’s degree from the University of Washington Graduate School. We lived five years in Basking Ridge, New Jersey before being transferred back to Washington State. We all had fond memories of our stay in Basking Ridge and it was hard for us to even think of selling our lovely home and buying another one 3,000 miles across the country. Lucky for us, real estate was booming, and we sold our house in just one day for our asking price. We were happy with that.

Our family decided it would be fun to drive across the country on our way to Seattle. We were having a house built on Mercer Island and there would be a wait time after we arrived. We also would enjoy seeing more of the country and visit friends and relatives along the way. We arrived in Boise, Idaho in time for a Tycz/Hruska family reunion. It was good to see everyone again and get reacquainted with family and friends that we hadn’t seen in quite a few years.

Once we reached Mercer Island, our home was not ready to move into, so we put our goods in storage and rented an apartment for a few months. Pam and Kay entered Mercer Island High School, and Curtis went to an elementary school that was within walking distance from our home. Curtis seemed to enjoy school and took banjo lessons for his own pleasure. I might add I enjoyed listening to him play also. Pamela graduated from Mercer Island High School in 1973, Kay 1974 and Curtis in 1982.

Since we moved into this house forty-six years ago, many wonderful things have happened to me. I will try to name a few.

1. I have been able to see all of my children graduate from College with degrees of their choice. Dennis graduated from Washington State University in 1975, Pamela from the University of Washington in 1978, Kay from the University of Washington in 1979, and also earned a master’s degree in 2007. Curtis earned an associate degree in science from Bellevue Community College in 1984 and in 1985 went to Western Washington University to graduate there in 1988.

2. Dennis fell in love with Lisa Todt and they were married on April 15, 1978 in Basking Ridge, New Jersey. So now I have a lovely new daughter plus as a bonus package, a grandson Bill, who was born on May 22, 1985.

3. Kay fell in love with Keith Smith and they were married on August 1, 1981 in the Sacred Heart Church in Bellevue, Washington. Now I have a handsome new son plus two grandsons, Matthew Smith born September 8, 1984 and Nathan Smith born November 11, 1987.

4. Curtis decided to give me another lovely daughter when he married Agnes Balint from Budapest on Valentine’s day 2005 with another big bonus of two granddaughters, Zsofi and Kitti.

5. Clare retired in 1985 after 32 years of corporate work and since then we have had 35 years of being able to sleep late in the morning, travel in our Airstream trailer during the winter months and going to our condo in Maui for two weeks in March.

6. We have also had the privilege of traveling Europe and visiting some of Clare’s relatives from the old country. This was a very exciting time in our lives.

This is 2019 and I feel I have had a wonderful life and God has been good to me. He has given me 92 years and the love of my life, Clare, 94 years. We were able to celebrate our 71th Wedding Anniversary this year. Who could ask for more?

To my children, I am so very proud of you and your accomplishments. You have brought so much joy into my life. I can’t express in words what that has meant to me. Take care of each other, and always remember how much you are loved.

Faye

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Muriel Faye Hruska Eulogy January 7, 2022

As written by Dennis Hruska

On behalf of my sisters and brother I would like to thank each of you for being here this afternoon to help us celebrate Mom’s life. In particular I’d like to thank Curt and Agnes for making the 16 hour trip from Cloverdale. Additionally I’d like to thank the Tomlin girls – I know each of you have been married for many years with different names, but you will always be the “Tomlin Girls” to me. Denise from San Diego, Marie from Wisconsin and Holly (Hoot) from perhaps the furthest place – West Seattle. Thank you all. Byron Trafton, a life-long family friend, who has been snowed out of his house in Leavenworth for the past week is joining us. I’m not sure when you will get home B, but thank you for all your efforts to be here. Finally, I’d like to thank Father Kurt Nagel for being here to say the final prayers with Mom. When we called he only wanted to know how he could help. Thank you Father Kurt.

Mom asked that her services be simple and small. As was her way, I think she wanted less fuss about herself and more focus on all of us being together, catching up, renewing our relationships and enjoying each-others company. As we say good bye, I would like to share a few words about what was important to Mom and the things she loved. In accordance with her wishes I will keep these remarks short and simple.

First and foremost, Mom believed in love. Her marriage to Dad for nearly 72 years is a shining example of that love. They were just made for each other. They were two people who knew, as they faced life’s challenges, two was always better than one. Dad said Mom saved his life. Mom said Dad could do anything and was always amazed when he did. They trusted one another and rewarded each other with respect.

Through her example Mom taught each of us how to love and what real love looked like. Romantic and affectionate for sure, tough and demanding when needed, always caring and genuine - never superficial or treated lightly. Mom showed her love with a kind word, a gentle touch, constant worry and sometimes - with a look only Moms can give and a brief mumble to no one in particular she would ask “what were you thinking about?” Her love was unconditional, without expectation of reward, unselfish – Mom loved you.

Family was important to Mom. This started with those she grew up with, her brothers and sisters and their families. It grew with Dad to include his family and then our immediate family. Ultimately her love extended to distant members and friends. In some cases Mom knew these folks better than they knew themselves; in other cases she might barely know them, having only met the once or twice, but in all cases they were family to Mom.

She was so very proud of her children. We didn’t always give her reason to be proud, but she never saw that part. As only a mother can, she saw the strengths and goodness in each of her children and those of her extended family. She was particularly proud of her grandchildren and loved watching them grow into fine young men.

Even if the last time you saw Mom was 10 years ago, she loved you, she cared for you, she worried about your welfare and rejoiced in your accomplishments. She wanted to know that you were alright, she wanted to help you in whatever way she could. Mom knew that to show only a passing interest in your life would not be good enough nor right for how she felt about you. You were family to Mom and that made you important.

Finally, Mom loved the little things in life. Beating the pants off of everyone at “Penny Ante” poker around the kitchen table was a particular favorite. Keith has said more than once, he knew he was in trouble when he saw that little smile on Mom’s face as she gazed over the top of her card hand.

She loved to grow things – a legacy from growing up on the family farm. Mom particularly loved flowers. Lisa, she was so appreciative of every arrangement you brought to her – even if you thought they were stinkers, she cherished every one.

Mom enjoyed sewing and made exquisite quilts for each of her children. They are works of art and a testament to her talent. But she also appreciated similar talents in others. Agnes, the crouched doilies your mother made were Mom’s favorite and she was so impressed by your Mom’s skills. We all received one have them proudly displayed in our homes. Thank you.

A tireless genealogist, Mom researched three family trees dating back to the 1700s and published her findings in three books so we might better know our ancestry.

And finally, I’d like to mention that Mom loved to dance.

Even though she could not manage this so easily in her later years, Mom remembered and relished dancing in her stories from the early Grange days, through the War years and into their early retirement days – Dancing, particularly tap dancing, was mom’s sport.

Oh to be sure, Mom also loved the bigger things in life; marriages, births, travels to Europe, Hawaii or the Snow Birding in the Southwest. Mom enjoyed them all. But it seemed the simple things were more her style. Mom never failed to light up when she received a visit; or spoke on the phone; or opened a card from a lifelong friend; or from you. You made her day. She loved you for the small things you two shared.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the daily care Pam gave Mom these past two plus years. She didn’t always love doing everything you asked her to do, but she always loved you for being there to watch out, encourage and care for her – day and night every day. Thank you Pam.

Faye was a devoted wife, mother and dearly loved all of her family. She was quick to smile and laugh and was always caring for those around her. Her departure leaves a huge hole in our lives, but we will always keep her memory close in our hearts and we will always have you.

So, I will conclude repeating what we said at Dad’s service, again from Corinthians – “Faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

God Bless Mom and thank you.