Obituary Project

I  have had two projects in the works..the first one has two parts.  Far Guys Mom saved Obituaries, I went through them and paper clipped the newspaper clippings inside the funeral programs, then I grouped families together.  I also wrote on the outside of the funeral programs who the people were and their relationship..if I knew it. The oldest funeral pamphlet I found was from 1944, from Far Guys Paternal Great Grandmother.  The oldest Newspaper Obit was from 1943, I may have one older than that but I have to traipse down to the cemetery and look at the headstone to make sure. Why hasn't someone written this info all down..just a little road map to make things easier???   Far Guys Mom had lots of friends from the Apartments and from the Nursing Home and anytime there was a funeral the little old ladies tended to gather together and go as a group, safety in numbers. She saved all these obits, twenty years worth..names I vaguely remember, people she had coffee with occasionally, little old ladies that she would talk to when she went downstairs to get her mail. Anyway they would go to the funerals as a group, who ever had the biggest car would drive, they would all pile in and go to the funeral. It was like an event.  Afterwards they would talk about the food served and how it could have been better.  Up here in the North, the food served at the funeral luncheon or dinner in your honor is a BIG deal.  These little old ladies had their own opinions of what was good and what was bad...in fact Far Guys Mom said "No Mac and Cheese" at her funeral, she left a recipe and a name of someone that made an excellent hotdish.  I hope all the little old ladies were very impressed with the food that day, Far Guys Mom did everything she could to make it a memorable meal other than cook it herself. The second part of the Obit project will be easier..It will be sorting through all the Obits that I have saved over the years. I should know all the people..so no guessing is necessary.  I have tucked them into my little white bible for years..it is now a bulging little white bible.

My second project is for my high school class.  I am trying to locate obituaries for classmates that have croaked.   Far Guy did this for his class, now he is helping me with mine.  Yesterday he showed me how to work the microfiche machine at the library, we were able to locate three obits and last night I entered them into our class web site.  Without the dates of their death it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.  You have to have someplace to start.  I have put out a plea to my classmates..the Class of 1969 to share any info they have.  I have a really weird class..they are not real communicative.  If I have time I would like to research a story I heard about one of my classmates..Wilma B. was a nut..she was always acting out..I was surprised to find out the she was in the Unites States Marines, I bet that was a challenge.  Anyway I heard that she was in the wrong place at the wrong time one day in Minneapolis, she was acting out and would not put her hands in the air when directed to do so and was shot and killed by a police officer.  Back in 1969 if someone had said "Who is most likely to be shot by a Police Officer?"..she would have been almost last on my list.

The newspapers and or funeral homes don't write obituaries like they used to..I have found some blog fodder in this obituary box, I will find some old photos and then traipse down to the cemetery to take a photo of their headstones.. another project that will keep me busy.  I seem to finish up one project and then add two more:)