(Note: This is the tribute that daughter Sarah wrote and delivered at Nana’s funeral. It pretty much sums up who Nana was and what she was about.)

I had a hard time writing down what I wanted to share today. There is so much to say, yet not enough about how much this woman meant to us. She is the foundation of our family; we don’t know what to do without her. But as I thought about her life and how she impacted ours, I am amazed at the legacy she is leaving behind.

Nana embodied the definition of love. She had the biggest heart for people, often times when everyone else had turned them away. She always saw past peoples faults and mistakes and welcomed them with open arms. As my sisters were packing up Nana’s things, they found many letters from various members of our family to her. Apparently, at one point or another, we all felt the need to apologize to her for whatever transgression we had committed. But the central theme in all our letters was that Nana always stood by us, never judging us, and loved us 100%.

She truly loved as Jesus loved. If you needed anything, you turned to Nana. I think at least half of her grandchildren lived with her at one point in our lives when we got tired of our parents. Or more likely, when they got tired of us. Regardless of the reason, Nana’s guest room was always open, and she would make us our favorite meals. However, while she never judged us, we could always count on a Nana lecture. She made sure to reinforce the strong Christian foundation that we had all been raised with, but never left out God’s mercy and grace. Growing up, I often thought that Nana could be a little strict. I remember going shopping one day with her and my mom, and I wanted this shirt. Back then there was a brand called No Fear, and since all the cool kids were wearing it, I thought I should as well. Nana put her foot down and told my mother not to buy it because we should fear God, and wearing a No Fear shirt was a mockery of our faith. At the time I was mortified because this took place in the store. But as I look back, this showed just how serious Nana took her relationship with God. She loved Him first and led her life as an example.

Now, just because she was a pure, sweet and caring woman, don’t think she didn’t have her feisty side. She always had a twinkle in her eye, and I don’t think I will ever forget the sound of her and Linda’s laughter when they were roommates. It took me years to realize this, but my Nana was cool! She traveled, she went on cruises, she was an independent woman! She would always bring back wonderful pictures and stories, and sometimes gifts for us. I remember being excited for her to return home from Hawaii to see what she brought me. As a teenager, the islands sounded so exotic to me. Nana came home and presented me with….a toothbrush with my name on it. I’m pretty sure she got it at the airport. The joke was on her, because I loved anything personalized, although knowing Nana, she knew that. Nana might have been labeled as stubborn, but as someone who inherited that quality I would like to think of it as being confident in our own opinions. A few weeks ago my mother was helping her into bed. At this point, her speech ability had dwindled, and she had a hard time that day making coherent sentences. Nana gestured that she needed to change into pajamas, and my mother gently said “No mom, you are already wearing pajamas”. Then Nana tried to take her shoes off, but as it turns out she wasn’t wearing any. Again, my mom corrected her, saying “No mom, you aren’t wearing any shoes”. My grandmother looked her straight in the eye, and clearly said “Wanna bet?”. That was my Nana.

For me, the time I will treasure most with her was right after my son was born. I was a young, newly single mother, and I had no clue as to what I was doing. So every night after I put Jayden to bed, I called Nana who was a fellow night owl. We would talk for hours, about life, finances, motherhood, religion, you name it. Nana would tell me stories about when she was a young woman, and how the sailors always wanted to flirt with her. Since she was a good girl, she never did anything to encourage them, but she liked it all the same. And sure enough, my sisters found several pictures of these sailors, on the back in her handwriting, she wrote “Velda’s Honey’s”. While I enjoyed laughing with her, the most important thing she taught me was how to be on my own. She taught me how to manage my finances. She taught me how to be a mother. She loved Jayden so much, and would let him get away with anything. We have a video of his first birthday and you see Nana giving him his first taste of Dr. Pepper, which you will see later in the slide show. It was bad enough that she passed on this addiction to me, but she just had to do it with her Jayden. She watched him while I worked, and would always tell him Bible stories, although when he started coming home with opinions on political candidates I had to put a stop to story time. She helped me hold it together for my son. She never criticized when I stumbled, only picked me back up and dusted me off. She is who I want to be when I grow up.

If you’ve never had Nana’s cooking, then you truly missed out. So many of us have memories of our favorite meals made by her, but few of us can match the taste. The only two people who can come close are my Aunt Cheryl and my sister Erin. My sister fondly remembers going to Nana’s after school in junior high and getting a cooking lesson every afternoon. Every day would be a new food, and Nana would tell her stories about her childhood while they cooked. And yes, those sailors came up again. I never understood how Erin could follow Nana’s recipes because they were always “a pinch of this” or a “little of that”. But something happened in that kitchen all those years ago, because Erin learned how to make those dishes with love, just as Nana taught her. She continues this legacy every day in the way she feeds and nourishes her family, and I know Nana is still so proud of her for that.

Back in 1986, my mother had her third child. The doctors had told us it was a boy, and we were all excited. So imagine our surprise when little baby Ashlee came into this world. We have a video of Nana standing at the nursery window with me and Erin, and she says “Another stinkin girl”. Well, that “stinkin girl” ended up capturing Nana’s heart. She used to say that Ashlee told the best stories, and they would sit for hours making up stories back and forth. Years later when Ashlee had a “stinkin girl” of her own, Nana repeated this sentiment about Brylee, saying that now Brylee told the best stories (and if you’ve ever met her, you know this is true). Ashlee always lit up Nana’s face, and always had something to say to make Nana smile. I know it tickled Nana to see that tradition follow in our little BryBry.

Aside from being full of love, Nana was as strong as nails. I have never met a stronger woman, and to see her face trial after trial with her head held high left us in awe. My Uncle Randy recently wrote this about his mother, and I would like to share it with you because it perfectly describes what an incredible fighter she was.

“My Mom was a woman of faith, and her tenacity in the face of this monstrous disease was a thing to behold. Not once in her fight did she blame God or waiver in her conviction of his healing power or in the belief that she would beat it. Never have I seen such determination. Even when the doctors gave her no chance, she would spit in their eye and keep moving forward. After every exam she would take whatever information the doctor gave and proclaim, see i told you the Lord healed me. In 2002 she was given 6 months to live and passed away today. I’ll miss her with an ache but I’ll remember her strength and take no prisoners swagger. I’m lucky to have known such a person.” Uncle Randy, I couldn’t have said it better myself.

It was no secret that Nana loved the men in our family fiercely. In her eyes, they were golden, much to the dismay of us women. Sometimes it felt unfair, but I don’t think it was because she loved them more than us. I think she was just confident in the example she provided for us women. She taught us how to be Godly women of faith. To love with everything in us. To have compassion for others. She taught us how to be independent, while still being loving wives. She was the perfect example of how to be a mother, and you can see that spirit shine through my mom and aunt. Nana was our role model, and I think it will take all of us to fill those shoes.

A week ago today I spent some time with her, not knowing it would be the last time she would ever speak to me. Again, her mind wasn’t what it used to be, and conversations with her were at times difficult. As I was leaving, I hugged her goodbye, kissed her cheek and told her I loved her, not expecting much of a response in return. Instead, she looked me right in the eyes and said “I love you too. Are you scared?”. That was just like Nana, more worried about how I was feeling than her own situation. I wasn’t scared for her, because I knew she would be in heaven, but I have to admit I am scared for me, for all of us. She was our rock. She steered this family. I’m sure at times she felt like the captain of the Titanic with us, but she never wavered. We don’t know what to do without her, but we will band together to do her legacy justice. We pray that we can be half the person she was.

We love you Nana.