Friday April, 26th, 2024
Celebration of Life Service for Tess
Rev Richard Weidler
Sam
Me
We are here for a celebration of Life
What Tess always called My Gathering
And now here you all are and I thank you
And I think, How did we get here?
Sometimes it's the Little Things that turn out to be the Big things
Little things like having friends Dave and Alice who encouraged me to visit them in Spartanburg SC
I got the job as school social worker at Cedar Springs where Tess was the school nurse
I went to an orientation class where the instructor made us laugh explaining how deaf kids communicate, as Tess would call them, the Bad Words- they have a thing called Total Communication- so you can only imagine how that went - so yes we laughed in embarrassment-we introduced ourselves and somehow arranged for a date-little things
We dated, I played catch with her son Eric. He knew every Indian tribe, every shark, every dog breed by name and characteristics. That and a million other bits of information.
Tess and I fell crazy in love and we were married by The Reverend William Ralph Carter who we called Papa.
Suddenly her Papa and Lee Lee and their Family became My Family
(brother Barry & Shirley and Michael).
I can only image poor Papa thinking OMG how did my sweet southern daughter get hooked up with this Yankee from New Jersey?
But they welcomed me in with Open Arm
That Friday night after our small family and friends wedding Tess and I jumped into my little Green Gremlin and flew down for our weekend honeymoon in Charleston.
I say flew but my Gremlin could barely reach 60. Nonetheless it was fast enough for us to get a $40 dollar speeding ticket, which he collected on the spot, so right there, half our honeymoon money was Gone.
We persevered, We took that famous horse and carriage tour of Charleston. Well we didn't so much take the carriage ride as Follow behind on our Bikes trying to hear it… uh could you please speak up?
Big things and Milestones
A year later We had our baby girl Lauren, the Happiest day of our lives,
Some 20 years later we went back to Charleston to see our girl all grown up
Graduate from the Medical University of South Carolina,
The Proudest Day of our lives
So there it is; the day we met, the day we married, the happiest days of our life
The day our baby was born, graduated and married,
The Proudest days of our life
And now, today, I know it's a celebration but forgive me,
the Saddest day of my life
Tess and I have lived such a wonderful life Together. We have been blessed in so many ways with so many friends and family, All of you here today
(Linda, Fred and Dara & Adam, Noel and Pam and Mike & Julie)
Sam and these two precious boys Nolan and Wes.
And it all began 46 years ago when I spoke these simple, yet ever more meaningful words:
Our wedding Vows
I, Peter, take thee, Tess, to be my lawfully wedded wife
For richer, for poorer,
In sickness and in health
I promise to, Love, Cherish, Honor and
Obey
From this day forward
Till death do us part
Silence
I know, it was a lot more fun the first time- but I would like others to have a chance to share their thoughts and memories at this time
Share Thoughts - others speak
John, Marion, Phil, Skip, Debbie
Conclusion
Tess honey, my precious angel, you made all of my wildest dreams come true. You filled me with dreams I never knew I had. I'm so lucky that you found me and let me Drive you Crazy for all these years. I now I love you better than life itself.
You tried to straighten me out, tried to raise me right. But You accepted me with all my flaws and still you loved me.
You gave My Life meaning and purpose and a reason for being. We lived together through every season of love and I will learn from you, love you and honor you all the days of my life, now and forever.
Cue the music
Pete and Tess
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