My Aunt, My Friend

 When my Aunt Judy turned 60 years old, there was a big birthday party thrown for her. At that time Eric and I lived in Pennsylvania so I couldn't make it to the party. Instead I wrote down some of my favorite things about my Aunt Judy and mailed it to my Mom, who then read it out loud at the party for me, during the time when guests could share some of their favorite Judy stories.  Fast forward almost twenty years later and my Aunt Judy was sick and her death would be soon. My Uncle, sister, Dad and I were going through some things in the basement and my Uncle came across a green folder that contained what I had written for Aunt Judy's 60th birthday. On the front of the green folder, I had written, simply, "MY AUNT, MY FRIEND". I asked him if I could borrow it and add some to it. Of course he said, "yes". Below is my revised version of what I had previously written, but this time around I added more about this woman that I loved, and the importance of her, and the role she played in my life and so many people's lives. Below is my revised version which Eric helped me read and share at her Celebration Of Life service on Saturday, April 6th. (I've also included a lot of pictures here that I love of her, our family, and some pictures that she took of my brother, sister, and I when we visited them in the summers.)

~ MY AUNT, MY FRIEND ~

Some people say that they have a favorite Aunt, or the best Aunt in the world - my Aunt Judy fit both of these descriptions.

Even when I was little, she always made me feel important. She listened. She included me. She took me along. She asked what I wanted to do. As I grew and learned, I realized just how important she was in my life.

Every summer my brother, Matt, my sister, Lindsee, and I would get to go to Uncle Ernie and Aunt Judy's house together for a week...without our Mom and Dad. We looked forward to our time spent with our Aunt and Uncle. They would always have fun new adventures to take us on, and new places for us to explore. A few highlights of our summer adventures together are trips to the Kansas City Zoo, helping wash their cars in the driveway, water fights in their front yard, reading The Fourteen Bears book, eating at Maxwell's Tacos and Bugers (It may have been Burgers, but we all called it Bugers), riding horses, bottle feeding calves, and playing with kittens at Judy's mom - Betty's farm, garage saling, and having a camp-out in one of the bays of their antique store. The stories are endless from these special summers and the memories will last a lifetime. (Below, six pictures from just a few of those summer adventures)

There was also a time that Aunt Judy had a us dress-up like we were from England. We helped prepare a special dinner for Ernie, and when he arrived home from work the show began! As we waited on him...I read a selection from an English book, and Matt brought Ernie his slippers...it was hilarious.

One summer, when we were very young, Matt, Lindsee, and I came up with what we called the "Sheet Show", named because our main prop that we used was bed sheets. Judy bought us an Alvin and the Chipmunks audiotape. We used the sheets and a few other props that we made that week on one of our adventures to Kaleidoscope, and we choreographed a routine to every song on that Chipmunks take. Aunt Judy must have sat through three or four performances of our "Sheet Show" in its entirety. That was love!

The summer that we camped in one of the bays at the antique store, Ernie and Judy had just purchased a new big red trailer. They had it parked in one of the bays. We all went to the store and had a fabulous game of hide and seek with all of us playing, even Punky their dog. Then we slept in the new red trailer that night.

We share some wonderful memories from times together in Colorado. Memories from our cabin near Pike's Peak, and memories from their cabin and the guest ranches in Taylor Park and Tin Cup. Judy was the best tour guide. She knew all the best hiking spots and great old gold mines to explore. Some of the things I will never forget are the hikes way up in the mountains to find abandoned gold mines, hiking to the old Gold Cup mining camp, packing snacks and drinks for our hikes, and exploring the Tin Cup Cemetery, watching for beavers, walking quickly away from a bear, and watching a moose drink from the stream. We took boat rides on Taylor Reservoir, and she put pop in a basket then lowered it into a cold mountain steam to keep it cold for drinking. Every time I drink a Sunkist orange or grape flavored pop, I will think of Tin Cup and my Aunt Judy. One of the last times we all went to Tin Cup, Aunt Judy, Dad, Matt, Lindsee, and I went on a beautiful mountain horseback ride. I'll never forget riding up along the Gunnison River when below us we spotted a group of white-water rafters. Suddenly Aunt Judy stood up in her stirrups and with a big wave of her hand, she yelled, "Hello down there!" Finally, the rafters responded, and we all waved and yelled "Hello". By the end of our ride, Aunt Judy could barely walk. She hadn't been in the saddle in a long time. As we were riding back into the corral, she was already yelling and motioning for Uncle Ernie to come over to her, help her down, and for him to help her get back to the truck.

Matt, Lindsee, and I had a lot of fun throughout the years searching for a different giraffe item that we thought Aunt Judy absolutely needed for her giraffe collection. She loved giraffes! We found pins, cards, figures, notebooks, a Beanie Baby, shirts, and giraffe print underwear. We all had a great laugh that Christmas when Aunt Judy opened those underwear! She acted embarrassed, but I think she loved it and all the laughter that we all shared.

When I graduated from college and Eric and I moved to St. Louis, she was so encouraging to me. I had never lived too far from home, and I was so nervous about living in a city that was so big. I thought I would for sure be lost and lonely, but she and I talked several times, and she told me it would be a new adventure for me, and that I would never be lost. "You can never be lost", she would say to me, "You just find a new way." She was right! She shared so much wisdom with me throughout my whole life.

Eric and I lived in several different places before settling in Wichita, Kansas. Everywhere we lived she would come to visit us, and she and I would have new adventures in each place. One especially memorable adventure was while we lived in Pennsylvania... She came to visit us a couple of times, but one time 18 years ago she invited me to a Torquay Pottery convention in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. I didn't know much about the Pottery that she was so enthusiastic about, but I found it interesting, and she gifted me my first piece of Torquay Pottery. I also learned right away that the Pottery was lovely, but the friendships made through the connection of the Pottery was a highlight of these yearly conventions. Aunt Judy had friends all over the United States and the world because of their shared love of Torquay Pottery. I remember her saying, "It's not just the pots, it's the people." I am a collector now, thanks to Aunt Judy. Again, she was right! The pots and their history are amazing and fantastic, but the people are wonderful.

Two things I learned the importance of from my Aunt Judy were letter writing and taking pictures. She was a wonderful letter writer and photographer. She helped me learn that writing a timely thank you note was appreciated. And, taking pictures to look back on and remember all the wonderful places visited and people encountered are a treasure to keep and look back on.

When Eric and I had children, Aunt Judy's love overflowed to them as well. They looked forward to seeing her as much as I did. They knew that she would have fun and surprises in store for them. Just like she did for me, she made them each feel important as well. She and Ernie came to some of their sporting events and activities to help support them, and she hand-wrote them letters and postcards to let them know she was thinking of them and loved them.

I knew that I could count on my Aunt Judy for anything. She helped my family and I numerous times. She was a good listener, offered advice, came to my rescue, gave words of encouragement and comfort, and gave some great hugs. She was one of the best Aunts, and one of my greatest friends. She will be missed but remembered with a thankful heart. I am thankful that she was my Aunt, and my friend.