|
|
Mary, a retired teacher and Historian of the Colorado Welsh society, died suddenly Monday, March 2nd at her home in Denver. She had been a faithful and enthusiastic member of the Welsh language class, managing to show up in all sorts of weather despite her many disabling health problems.
Services were held at Corona Presbyterian Church in Denver and the Pleasantville Presbyterian Church in Pennsylvania. Interment was in Titusville, Pennsylvania. Mary's cheerful smile and beautiful face, crowned by a halo of brilliant white hair, will be sorely missed by us all.
Berwyn JonesRemarks from her service at 1st Presbyterian Church in Pleasantville, PA
An Abundant LifeMary Elizabeth Keeley was born on January 11, 1926. She died on Monday, March 2, 1998. Psalm 90 verse 12 reads:
"So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom."
Mary counted her days and made the most of them. She lived a truly abundant life. We often say at times like this that the person lived a full life, But Mary lived a FULL life. She crammed as much living into each day as she possibly could. She never stopped going. She never stopped growing.She earned a bachelor's degree at Penn State; a masters at the University of Colorado at Greeley. She taught school in Aurora, Colorado and at Nogales, Arizona; she loved Scottish music and dance, and most recently, she joined the Welsh club and immersed herself in the language and culture of Wales. She loved to read and she loved to chat. She was gregarious and her smile came quickly and from the heart.
Mary was a traveler and a life-long student. She was also a survivor of polio. Perhaps this is what gave her such a zest for life. Mary overcame her physical challenges by the sheer force of her will. She spent several years as a child in the D. T. Watson home for crippled children. She wore braces all her life. She knew the meaning of suffering.
Suffering presents a person with a choice: Will I become bitter or better? Will I make the most of each moment and live a truly abundant life, or will I curl up and withdraw and waste the life I have? Will I be a victor or a victim? Mary Keeley was a victor. No one would ever accuse Mary of being withdrawn. She wasn't a wallflower. She was the life of the party. She had a joyous spirit about her that lifted our spirits. She was quite a character.
This zest for life is typified by Mary's involvement in the Welsh club. Now, one might wonder (I know I did) why Welsh? Did some of her ancestors come from Wales? Well, that depends who you ask. After all, why should a good tale be limited by something so dreary as the facts? If Mary wasn't Welsh before she dove into it, she was surely Welsh by the time she did. In fact, the choir director of the Welsh club called her a "choir groupie." She so loved to hear them sing that she followed them wherever they went. On one occasion, the choir was scheduled to sing at a ceremony in Russel Gulch cemetary, and it was a cold, rainy, dreary day. In fact, if the choir hadn't been scheduled to sing, they never would have been there. But when they looked up, here comes Mary, getting off her bus, ready to listen.
Mary was also a person of faith. She joined the Pleasantville Presbyterian Church in 1942, and she probably transferred her membership back and forth from our church to wherever she was, back and forth, back and forth, more than anyone in the history of our church. But she didn't just transfer a letter of membership. She lived her faith wherever she was. For it was her faiith that enabled her to see herself not as a person with a disability but as a child of God, for whom all things were possible. Instead of allowing her life to be dominated by her limitations, she was indomitable, for she was a lamb of the Good Shepherd's flock. She belonged to the one who came that she might have life, and life she had! There was no growing tired or weary for Mary. She was soaring on eagle's wings!
Mary's life fits well with shat Jesus says (John 10:9):
I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved
and shall go in and out, and find pasture."
Mary, approached her life through the gate of Christ, through faith, and spent her life coming in and out, traveling here and there, always searching for where the grass was the greenest.The Good Shepherd has brought Mary to that place. She has come through the valley of the shadow of death into the everlasting light of the presence of God. This lamb of God who never stopped going has found rest and peace in God's green pasture.
The day I learned of Mary's death, I read this in my devotions:
God has given me the ability to recall memories of loved ones, not so that I can live the past, but so that I will be blessed and uplifted now.
Althougn these people have passed on to another level of existence, I can remember their faces and the events that have special meaning for me. More important, I remember that our real connection is a spiritual one, which is eternal.
If my memories of people and events are not fond ones, I can begin to forgivemyself and others for words that may have been said or actions that may have taken place. As I release negative thoughts, new avenues for love and understanding and harmony open before me.
My day is made brighter through my remembrances, but each day is an opportunity to create new memories.As we mourn the loss of a sister, an aunt, and a good friend, let us remember Mary's smile. Let us remember her enthysiastic embrace of life and the way she overcame obstacles to live an abundant life. And let us imagine, Mary without her braces, dancing and frisking about like the re-born lamb of God she is, turning down the angel's offer of a harp and demanding bagpipes instead. Her life was abundant. Now, it is eternal. When the Welsh say good-bye, they say... "Da boch chi", "God be with you". Until that day when we meet again, may she rest in peace. Amen.
Rev. David Duquette
Return to :
Memorial index Page -or- Back to CWS Main Page -or- Return to Trefor's Page
Web Page by TD Roberts. Please report any problems directly to: trefor@worldnet.att.net
Page created: Jun. 02, 2001 and modified: Jun. 02, 2001