Category: Newsletter Articles

by George Schmidt My father died in 1962 when I was 16 years old. He had married late in life, had very little insurance and was receiving a small pension which was immediately stopped by his former employer. He left his widow, my brother who was a first classman (senior) at the United States Naval…

By Jean T.D. Bandler We appreciate those funeral homes that responded to our price list requests, but remain puzzled that most ignored our letters, apparently willing to keep their charges a secret. We are also surprised that several homes reported the price lists “were unavailable” or provided incomplete “estimates”. We are thankful for the hard…

by Craigg McRae On May 12, 2004 my son Tom had a car accident which left him brain dead with no hope of recovery. After 18 hours of agony watching him kept alive on various machines and having numerous tests to see if there was any brain activity at all, Tom’s mother and I gave…

by Stuart E. Rapp When I walked into the kitchen from some errands in mid-morning, my wife held up a scribbled message while talking quietly but urgently on the phone. “Danny was killed in an auto accident early this morning near Frederick, Maryland” it read. My second son was calling about the sudden death of…

by Jean T.D. Bandler Everyone wants to have “a good life”. Definitions will vary, with some hoping for fame, success, and money and others stressing personal ties, civic contributions, and good deeds. Most wish for health, happiness, and productive work. Everyone also hopes for “a good death”, and here the definitions are remarkably similar. “A…