Edward "Eddie" William Elari

Eddie was born to Louie Joseph Elari and Patricia Lee (Anderson) Elari. He was the grandson of Domenico Elari, Antoinette “Nettie” (Satriano) Elari, Edward William Anderson, and Adalyn Elliot (Scribner) Anderson. Brother to Debbi (Elari) Hill, Lisa Elari, and David Joseph “Joe” Elari.

He was a loving husband to Kollette (Dalton) Elari, and a father to Gianna (Elari) Taets, Tiara Elari, Alyssa “Ali” Elari, Jennifer Loveland, and John Bennett. He was a nephew, uncle, cousin, and grandfather to many, and a friend to all.

There was Jesus.

In the waiting, in the searching

In the healing and the hurting

Like a blessing buried in the broken pieces

Every minute, every moment

Where I've been and where I'm going

Even when I didn't know it or couldn't see it

There was Jesus.

If you knew my dad you knew he lived life to what he knew to be the fullest. Everyone who met him could see that. What he didn’t know was in his last moments he would feel the fullest, even as his flesh began to fail. “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”(Psalm 73:26) My dad found a strength that he didn’t even know existed, and he had to do nothing to earn it. He knew mental strength, he knew physical strength, and now he knew strength in his spirit. In his last days as he laid bedridden, he kept repeating three phrases. “Thank you for everything”, “I love you guys”, and the Bible verse “I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.”(Psalm 118:17) I didn’t understand why in the moment. How could he be dying yet be so full of gratitude? Then it hit me. In every moment of his life, there was Jesus.

I laid asleep in bed at home on April 11, 2023 and I started to dream. In my dream, I was with my dad in the room at the hospice center that he had been in for the last six days. He opened his eyes and was completely awake and no longer suffering. I was shocked as he hadn’t been fully awake since the first day we admitted him. I laid my head on his shoulder and said,

“Hey Dad”

He replied with, “Hey sweetheart”

I then followed with, “What is heaven like?”

He said, “It is amazing.”

I was awoken suddenly by a knocking on my bedroom door. My brother looked at me with a tear-filled smile and said, “Dad is home”.

I have never felt so thankful, heartbroken, and at peace all at the same time. Something I feared so deeply, had happened. Yet there was Jesus, and my words fell short but I could never express the gratitude I feel. While my dad’s earthly life has ended, his new eternal life has just begun. His story isn’t over, and we get to tell about what God did in his life and in our lives and declare the works of the Lord.

Ci vediamo presto Dad, Ti amo.

-Gianna Taets (Elari)

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.MartinMortuary.com for the Elari family.