Personalizing Obituaries
Some obituaries offer basic information about a person’s life and death, but they often don’t encompass the personality of the person who died. When you personalize an obituary, your deceased loved one lives on.
As you’re preparing the obituary for a Roanoke, VA funeral service for your loved one, think hard about what made them special and unique, and what you want people to remember about them. Obituaries are our last opportunity, in a public and written forum, to honor and pay tribute to the memory of our deceased loved one. We should make the most of it.
Consider the obituary of Debra “Deb” Ross, of Indian Trail, NC, who died February 29, 2020. Although the obituary doesn’t offer a commentary on the date of death, the family and hospice nurses all said that it was just like Deb to die on a date that happens only once every four years, leaving her family and friends with the dilemma of whether to remember her death anniversary in non-leap years on February 28 or March 1.
Deb’s personalized obituary captured her spirit:
“Debra (Deb) Lynn Ross died at home on February 29, 2020. She was predeceased in death by her parents, [etc].
In addition to her family, Deb also loved her fur babies. Tasha, Kershaw, Reba, and Martina left before Deb did, but Alex and Grayson remained devoted to her to the end of her life.
Deb proudly served in the United States Air Force Fire and Rescue Squad. Anytime Deb would hear the National Anthem, she would stop whatever she was doing, stand at attention, put her hand to her heart, and show respect to her country.
Deb loved her chef career spanning over 35 years. During a visit to Scotland, Yvette’s Aunt and Uncle nicknamed her “Debs,” and then soon after, we called her “Chef Debs”. She loved looking at cookbooks though she never used one to create one of her delicious meals.
Deb lived life on her own terms, and she lived it with gusto. She loved to laugh and cut up from the moment she popped out the womb, 50 minutes before Sam. She had a sunny disposition with a gift for optimistic talking that refused to let anybody be in a bad mood or be upset for long.
Deb had a competitive side, though, when she sat down to play cards. Poker was her forte; seldom did Deb walk away without the full pot.
Deb loved playing games, and she could always be counted on for the funniest answers, providing entertainment to all who surrounded her with a gift for making people laugh.
Deb was not a selfish person, far from it. She would always put others’ needs before her own, and her generosity was life-changing to some.
And we can’t forget Deb’s passion for North Carolina Tarheels Basketball (even in a lousy season like this), Michigan Football, and Carolina Panthers Football. Deb was a loyal fan no matter how well or poorly they played, and her enthusiasm for them never waned…
Deb’s music recollection was remarkable. Someone would say a simple sentence, and she would come up with a tune singing a lyric or two of a song that came to her mind. She would then say, “there’s a song for everything. “ We enjoyed our seasons in the sun with Deb. She did it her way, and love will keep us together. Go ahead and sing; she is humming those songs right along with us as we read.
We will miss Deb tremendously, but are comforted that we will see her again, healthy, healed, and whole…
Deb loved her flip flops and shorts and was always asking when going to any event, ‘Do I have to put on real shoes?’ so please dress casually and comfortably for Deb’s memorial service.”
For more information on writing a personalized obituary for a Roanoke, VA funeral service, our compassionate and experienced staff at Conner-Bowman Funeral Home & Crematory is here to help.
