November 2025 Dear Mom, Alex turned 32 this year. It really does not seem possible. I have been thinking of my pregnancy with him and have been reminded of the myriad times I wished I could have called you to share or ask a question. I desperately wanted another child. Sara was nearly 9 when…
October, 2025 Dear Mom, I have so many happy memories of October, with all of its beauty. I know how much you loved it too. I remember, as a child, that we would all get into the car after lunch on Sundays for our family drive. Charlie and I sat in the backseat and looked…
September 2025 Dear Mom, Sara got married on September 6. I know you were there to celebrate with us. You adored your granddaughter and would never have missed this event. The wedding was a beautiful affair, rather like our own wedding in 1978 in its small size and simplicity. Sara looked like a fairy princess…
August, 2025 Dear Charlie, As I was reviewing some papers, I came across your last birthday card to me from 2020. The verse was “I’m so lucky to have you as a sister and a friend. Happy Birthday.” Your personal note brought tears to my eyes—”Thank you for everything, especially for your love. We are…
July 2025 Dear Mom, This July 8th, Fred and I will have been married for forty-seven years. 47!! It seems like only yesterday. I feel eternally grateful that both you and Dad were able to be with us on that day. You two always supported me, and it felt very important that you were there…
June, 2025 Dear Dad, I wish I could go to one more baseball game with you. I wish I could have one more lunch with you at the Silver Grill in downtown Cleveland. I wish I could receive one more letter from you telling me how my high school, college, graduate and hometown teams were…
Dear Mom, Happpy Mother’s Day! I am deeply grateful for your presence in my life, both while on earth and now, wherever you may be. I know that you are with me, guiding me and helping me in subtle ways, that I probably do not even realize. Thank you. The last time I saw you…
April, 2025 Dear Mom, What a blessing to be able to attend the celebration of life for my beloved Aunt Helen. At first I felt very sad but then I realized I was really thinking of your funeral, which was incredibly sad for me because you died so soon. Then I thought about Aunt Helen,…
Dear Mom, Soon Fred and I will be heading to Rochester, NY, for a celebration of Aunt Helen’s life. My cousin asked me to offer a prayer during the interment and this is what came to me. Dear Lord, Thank you for the blessing of Peter and Helen Rutan in our lives. They taught us…
February 26, 2025 Dear Mom, We live in a very discordant world right now. For that reason, I am focusing on my story of kindness and humanity. On July 15, 2024, my foot got stuck under the rod of the picnic table by Dockside and I splatted on the ground, breaking both my right wrist…
