Geneva Faye Welch 7.21.43 - 3.20.2011

*Note: This post is about my grandmother's funeral and I have posted some images of her casket and images from the funeral. I know this could be disturbing to some people, so if you wish to not see them then I suggest skipping this post!  ~ Heather

Late last Sunday my Maternal Grandmother went to be with Jesus.

This is the first death in my family of a close relative.  I have had many great-grandparents and great uncles and great aunts pass away, but never anyone in my immediate family. Needless to say it has been a very difficult week.

Chris and I decided that Nash and I should fly up to Owosso, MI for the funeral that was being held on Thursday.  So on Tuesday, Nash and I jumped on a plane up to Michigan. Owosso is a little town outside of Lansing, so we flew to Lansing and my Mom picked us up from the airport. This small community is where my Mom was born and raised until she was 17. It was great to see where she grew up and went to school and church, however it was sad because we were there for a death.

My grandmother died at the age of 67 and had 4 children, 11 grand-children and 8 great-grandchildren. My mothers entire family made it out to Michigan except for my brother Hunter (who is in Africa) and Chris (who was not allowed to leave). It was amazing to see all of her family there to give her love.  Some of the family I had not seen in over 15 years.  Can you believe it, 15 years?

4 - Children - Gloria, my Mom, Gail, and Joey

Grand Children plus significant others (minus Hunter and Chris)

Grandchildren and Great Grandchildren

The funeral was exactly how my grandmother would have wanted it to be. It was held at a church my mother grew up in and approximately 175 people were present.  My grandmother was loved by her community and church family.  She felt her service was to serve and love the children of her church, so she  loved to do all sorts of projects for them.  Grandma was always coming up with some grand idea to build something for someone or some new project.  The pastor at the funeral said that we needed to pray for Peter because my grandmother was going to keep him busy with all her ideas.

Grandma's Life in still: Photo book of each child's life

Her Bible 

Her necklace and her wedding rings

Pictures of her and her family

Before the service, we had an open casket for immediate family to say their goodbyes.  I never thought I would be one to look at my grandmothers soulless body, but in some way, it was a great closure for me. It was nice to see that my Mom and Aunt Gloria put my grandmother's quilt of all her grand and great grand children in her casket.  Unfortunately, Grandma did not have time to add Ben and Nash to the quilt.

My Parents

The flowers on the casket = beautiful

4 Red Roses for her Children

11 Yellow Roses for Grand Children

8 Pink Roses for Great Grand Children

While people were arriving, we had a movie being displayed of my grandmother's life. The movie provided a way for others to see my grandmothers life from the time she was born to the time she died.

During the service Grandma's two favorite songs were played: Coal Miner's Daughter by Lorretta Lynn which represented her upbringing as a coal miners daughter in the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky.  The second song was Coat of Many Colors by Dolly Parton. Grandma loved this song because she never felt poor but instead she felt rich because of all love she had.  The one request my Grandma had was she did not want to the service to be sad, but one of happiness and love.  I have 100% confidence that this request was met. There was much love in the service.

Once the service was over the pallbearers carried my grandmother to the hearse.  My mother and her siblings road in the limo to the cemetery and we all followed in a line after them.  It was a wonderful sight to actually see that people still have funerals in this fashion.  I have been to several funerals over the past years and no one has the line of cars following the hearse or showing respect for the cars that are in the line for the funeral.

At the cemetery we laid my grandmother to rest.  It was a crisp 23 degrees outside with a fresh layer of snow and ice.  It just made the day more memorable.

Death is a hard to concept to grasp.  However, as a Christian I know that those who accept Christ in their heart have eternal life.  It is a huge comfort to know that my grandmother loved the Lord and because she did God has prepared a room for her in Heaven (John 14:2-4).  And in heaven I know there is no sadness or pain. Revelation 21:3-4 states this "I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”  One more thing that I know is that she will get a new young body once in heaven. 

2 Corinthians 5

¹ For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. ²³For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies. ⁴ While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. ⁵ God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit. ⁶ So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. ⁷ For we live by believing and not by seeing. ⁸Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.

For this I am grateful that my grandmother knows and loves the Lord. And because of this I know I will see her again in heaven.