Helen M. Servaty of Wyoming, MN
June 28, 2010
Date of Birth: December 24, 1929
Date of Death: June 27, 2010
Passed away peacefully on June 27, 2010 at her daughter, Mary’s home surrounded by her family.
Helen is survived by sons, Thomas, Richard, David and Steven; daughters, Mary Muellner, Carol Servaty and Barb Brown; many grandchildren and great grandchildren; brother, Richard Pedersen; nieces and nephews, other relatives and friends.
She is preceded in death by husband, Paul; son, Kenneth, brothers, Fred, Dale and Roger; and sisters, Doris, Lois and Jeanette.
Gathering & Celebration of Life
A celebration of Helen’s life will be held on Wednesday, June 30, 2010 at 7 PM in Roberts Family Funeral Home, 555 Centennial Drive SW, Forest Lake, Minnesota with a gathering of friends beginning at 5 PM until time of service. Family interment services will be held in Calvary Cemetery, Forest Lake.
Kay C. McChesney of Wyoming, MN
June 28, 2010
Date of Birth: November 18, 1942
Date of Death: June 27, 2010
Age 67 of Wyoming, Minnesota passed away June 27, 2010. Preceded in death by her parents, Joseph and Aleda Thompson and brother, Merton “Mike” Thompson. Survived by husband of 49 years, John; son, Bob (Toni) McChesney; daughter, Julie (Brian) Harris; grandchildren, Steve McChesney, Joe McChesney, Marissa McChesney, Sarah McChesney, Keith Ravnes and Kevin Ravnes and niece, Jody Johnson.
Visitation & Funeral Service
Funeral Service 7 PM Wednesday, June 30th at Linwood Covenant Church, 6565 Viking Blvd NE, Wyoming, MN with visitation beginning at 5 PM and going until time of service. Interment Cottage Grove Cemetery, Cottage Grove, MN.
Margaret C. Husnik of Forest Lake, formerly of Hugo, MN
June 25, 2010
Date of Birth: April 7, 1919
Date of Death: June 25, 2010
Nee: Hauble
Age 91, passed away peacefully on June 25th. Preceded in death by husband, Edwin. Survived by children, Don (Marilyn), Ron (Barbara), Jim (Jane), Tom (Terese), Kathy (Paul) Rockey; thirteen grandchildren and seventeen great grandchildren; other extended family, and many friends.
Visitation & Mass of Christian Burial
Visitation will be 4-8 PM Thursday July 1st at Roberts Family Funeral Home, 555 SW Centennial Drive, Forest Lake. Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:30 AM Friday July 2nd at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church of Hugo, 14383 Forest Blvd., Hugo, with visitation one hour prior. Internment will be at the church cemetery. Memorials preferred.
Robert L. Elmstrom of Forest Lake, MN
June 15, 2010
Date of Birth: March 29, 1924
Date of Death: June 15, 2010
Age 86 of Forest Lake passed away June 15, 2010. Proud WWII Veteran. Preceded in death by parents, Myrna and Roy Elmstrom and sister, Doris Jacobson. Survived by his wife of 65 years, Eleanor; daughter, Karen (Fritz) Schuldt; son, Bill (Marlene) Elmstrom; 5 grandchildren, Susan (Glen) Gillson, Daniel Schuldt, Dale (Jessica) Schuldt, Jeanette (Joe) Wolfe and Elizabeth (Mike) Cromie; 12 great grandchildren; sister, Gladys (Bill) Johnson; brother, Herb (Sandy); special friends, Jan and Jack Palmer; other relatives and friends.
Gathering & Memorial Service
Gathering of family and friends 4 – 8 PM Thursday, June 17th at Roberts Family Funeral Home, 555 Centennial Dr. SW, Forest Lake. Memorial Service 11 AM Friday, June 18th at Faith Lutheran Church, 886 North Shore Drive, Forest Lake. Interment Elim Cemetery, Scandia.
Leonard G. Ohman of Crystal, MN
June 14, 2010
Date of Birth: August 15, 1920
Date of Death: June 14, 2010
Leonard Gordon Ohman, age 89 Crystal, MN passed away on June 14, 2010 in Macomb, IL. He was born August 15, 1920 in Minneapolis and was united in marriage to Fae Moore, February 14, 1942. Preceded in death by wife, Fae in 2003 and his parents. Survived by daughter, Janet (Jerry) Lindsay of Macomb, IL; son, Ross (Julie) Ohman of Forest Lake, MN; grandchildren, Lara (Gautham) Iyer, Jeff Lindsay, Katie Lindsay, Jonathan Ohman, Joel Ohman and Jackie Ohman; twin great grandchildren, Bodhi Lindsay Iyer and Nina Lindsay Iyer. Leonard worked as a Mechanical Design Engineer for Northern Ordinance/FMC Corporation in Fridley, MN for 42 years. He was a member of Ducks Unlimited, enjoyed duck hunting, trout fishing and trap and skeet shooting.
Visitation & Funeral Service
Visitation 4-7 PM Friday, June 25th at Roberts Family Funeral Home, 555 Centennial Dr. SW, Forest Lake. Funeral service 10:00 AM Saturday, June 26th at Hosanna Lutheran Church, 9300 Scandia Trail North, Forest Lake with visitation one hour prior to service. Interment Hillside Cemetery, Minneapolis. Memorials to Hosanna Lutheran Church in Forest Lake, Minnesota or Trinity Lutheran Church Building Fund in Macomb, Illinois.
Seeing is believing….
June 7, 2010
” Seeing is believing,” is what I often hear when Tim is explaining the value of viewing their deceased loved one. I recently ran across the following article that describes the message that Tim & many funeral professionals pass along everyday.
Most people have heard the old saying “seeing is believing”… but many people have also lived through a life experience which gave them a deep, emotional understanding of this simple phrase. Consider what happens when a parent receives call from their child’s school saying that their child has been hurt on the school yard. They’re told that the child is ok but still they’ll spend the rest of their work day counting the minutes…waiting to see their child….because seeing is believing.
Consider what happened to our entire society when the planes flew into the twin towers on Sept 11 2001. Within minutes of hearing the news over, televisions across the country were turned on as people watched the videos over and over again. They have estimated that over 90% of American’s saw the videos the first day. Many people had the TV on all day watching the videos over and over again, trying to grasp the magnitude of the moment, trying to come to grips with the trauma…because seeing is believing.
The burning desire to See is the natural human response to any traumatic event. Seeing the event, or seeing the aftermath of the event, makes the traumatic event real. It’s already real on an intellectual level as soon as we hear about the event, but to make it real on an emotional level we must See.
Psychologists tell us that all traumatic events introduce a certain amount of chaos into our lives and that the lingering effects of chaos is what most people refer to as grief. They also tell us that the need to See is tied to our need to bring order out of chaos and in doing so to minimize the long term grief that is associated with the traumatic event.
Back in 1969, Elizabeth Kubler Ross in her book “Death and Dying” described 5 stages of grief. The 5 stages are Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance. These widely accepted stages are now taught in every psychology program in the country. We can try to deny the stages….but we cannot avoid them. The 5 stages are fundamental to our human nature. We move through these stages so that we can bring order to chaos and begin to accept the event. Seeing the outcome of a traumatic event is a critical component of Acceptance. In fact, without Seeing it is extremely hard to get to the point of Acceptance or ever move to the point of experiencing emotional healing.
Consider the difference between the painful death of a loved one versus the disappearance of a loved one. With a death and the reality of saying goodbye to your loved one you can eventually move through grief, reach Acceptance and on some level…heal. But with a disappearance there is no closure. You will experience grief but you will never reach Acceptance, instead you will be bogged down in Depression….sometimes you will stay there for the rest of your life.
A common point of debate in our culture today is whether or not there should be a public viewing of the body after the death of a loved one. Some people think that the viewing makes it even harder for the family. In fact, viewing the body plays an extremely important role in moving a person through the five stages of grief in a healthy way.
If someone you care about passes away you can never avoid grief you can only move through it. Seeing the remains of a loved one is an undeniable confirmation of the death. For those who are stuck in the first stage of grief (i.e, Denial) it empowers them to move forward through the grief process and to eventually heal from the loss.
Seeing the final disposition of the body is also critically important because it brings closure to the traumatic event. Whether it be the lowering of a casket into a grave or the scattering of cremated remains, it is important for everyone who had an emotional connection to the deceased to witness the final ceremony. Only by experiencing this final goodbye ceremony firsthand can we find closure and begin healing.
Some people who are preplanning their own funerals wrongly assume that they are making it easier for their family by requesting no viewing of their remains. Sadly, they are actually making it harder for their family. Allowing their body to be present is actually the last meaningful gift that they can give to their loved ones. Their soul may have departed but their earthly body will help those who remain accept the loss and begin their journey through the natural grief process towards emotional healing.
Always remember…if someone you love passes away you cannot avoid grief. Instead you should reach out to others who can help you navigate this difficult time so that you can honor their life, accept the loss and begin emotional healing.
Seeing is believing.
And believing leads to Emotional Healing…..
Posted with permission by John Callaghan