Tom's Acknowledgements

Lorraine was fond of quoting old sayings, many of which she heard from her mother, and she had a knack for aptly applying one to a situation at hand. Occasionally, she would quote  (sometimes misquote!) a line from a song; if it applied to a current happening: 

“Blue skies, smiling at me …”, “Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away…”; then she would say “My life in song!” After an effort in which many individuals joined to take-on some task, she would express her satisfaction by saying “Many hands make light work!” It might have been washing a mountain of dirty dishes with others after a large Quaker gathering or working with neighbors in Chicago to transform a nasty city lot into a beautiful community garden.

Well, the planning and implementation of Lorraine’s Memorial Celebration turned out to be quite a challenge! But to quote Lorraine: “Many hands made light work!” This project was accomplished by so many “Hands”, that it is impossible for me to thank or even mention them all! If I were to estimate, I’d say that more than 100 hands worked on this Memorial Celebration, so I won’t single out any individuals. Instead, I’ll acknowledge the efforts of all these people by describing what it took to make this 

Celebration of Lorraine’s Life a reality.

At first, the project seemed relatively simple: we would prepare some food and drink, gather with friends, and celebrate Lorraine’s Life in our own home, much like the many house parties we hosted over the years. However, we soon realized that a Celebration of Life is not the same as a house party. Although it was a celebration, the purpose for the event was very different from an ordinary party.  Furthermore, the number of guests and the list of tasks to consider was quite large. So we had to rethink. The house would not accommodate that many guests, so we needed a place that would provide adequate space and be suitable for a tribute to Lorraine’s Life. The project grew in size and complexity. Many “Hands” would be needed, and those hands would have to be divided into teams. Each team would need a person in-charge, and someone would

have to coordinate the efforts of all the teams.

Covid complicated everything. Finding a reasonably safe outdoor venue for the in-

person attenders took weeks of searching. Planning and designing a socially-distanced setup for the local audience, the food buffets, and the displays of Lorraine’s artwork all

caused many headaches. Putting the choral music together required singers to record their parts separately and email them, followed by hours of editing and combining the soundtracks.

We decided to do our own catering, so: menus were planned and grocery lists were drawn up and purchased, disposable (but ecologically-responsible) plates, forks, etc., were found and purchased, food and beverages were prepared, and 3 buffets and beverage stations were set up. Someone also baked homemade brownies and blondies; they were yummy!

We wanted to display some of Lorraine’s art and craft work and have photos for the local attenders to see. So a decorating team was formed. About 30 of Lorraine’s scarves were selected, as well as 3 quilts, a dozen or so of her paintings, and one of her journals. Literally, thousands of photos were reviewed; we wanted to include anyone who appeared in a photo with Lorraine, whether we recognized that person or not! About 200 photos made the cut; many were lovingly placed on poster boards for local guests to view, many more appeared in the photo montages during the ceremony, and nearly all can be found on this website.

This website had to be designed and built to provide a home for all the photos, music, videos, and memories of Lorraine in electronic form, including a recap and complete transcription of the formal ceremony. We also used the website for the invitations, the RSVP questionnaire, driving directions to the venue,  and instructions for accessing the Zoom session.

The tech team set up and synchronized all the electronic components and kept them functioning during the formal ceremony. These tasks and components included: cabling and setting up the PA system, the TVs, Computers, Zoom sessions, and handling the Music and Video cues. 

Moving all the equipment, including a huge 75-inch TV, the groceries, the boxes of decorations, and the people from the house to the venue was a logistical challenge, requiring  several cars and pickup trucks, and plenty of muscle.  It was a small moving

job!  Many attenders simply said “How can I help.” And with a smile, they took on a multitude of last minute tasks: running to the store, going back to the house to grab some forgotten lime juice and a TV remote, rearranging and moving displays, dealing with the wind by lifting and toting tables and chairs and bags of potting soil, 

and many other tasks.

On the day of the Celebration, the gusts of wind were so strong, that several people advised me to move the event inside. I wanted the Celebration to be outdoors, so I asked all the children present to “wish real hard” that the wind would die down; kids have the best wish-power! Then, in the midst of all that wind and the hubbub of the teams working, I asked a friend to sit with me for a few minutes in silence while I tried to find the Faith to “know” that we would have an outdoor Celebration, and that the

wind would not spoil it. After sitting with my friend, I decided that we would proceed according to plan, and I walked to the podium to begin our outdoor Celebration in that beautiful setting. The wind did tease us a bit, but that was all.

All these efforts took place over a 4-month period, during which, the pace accelerated as the day of the event approached, culminating in a 4-hour Celebration of Lorraine’s Life.

For me, this was a 4-month “prayer”, in which God’s Angels appeared constantly, in human form, often consoling me and mine, but mostly to help accomplish “the prayer”. These Angels provided the “many hands that made this work light.”

At this moment, I am infused with a powerful impulse of gratitude for all the Angels that appeared over the last 4 months and on the day of the Celebration, one of whom simply

sat in silence with me for a few minutes. What shall I do with all this gratitude?

I will quote Lorraine and say: “Danke! [MWAH]”