Ellingson Tributes to Grandma Richardson

Dear Mother Lavona,

I have always admired how you have believed in and encouraged your children.  In addition, you exposed them to remarkable experiences and opportunities.  In every way you provided love and support for them in each of their pursuits.  Last but not least, you have loved and encouraged me! Thanks! 

Love,  Mark

I am so grateful to you, my mother, for helping me to develop my talents.  Thank you for urging me to learn piano, flute, violin, organ and voice.  How rich my life has been because I have music.  And you truly “put the music in me!”  Thanks for helping me to be a good student, for helping me type papers, and just all the details.  What I loved was the outings, just you and me, usually to go buy material for a sewing project.  You were so generous, and I was so blessed by a wise mother who encouraged me and financed me so I could learn to sew.  Priceless gifts from a wonderful mother!

I was truly grateful that I had a Mom who was there for me, a mom who was home, and who I could call with my victories as well as my hard times, from the phone in the Seminary room.  Thanks so much for giving me that glorious Austria experience, by realizing that I needed to go that year, and letting me pay it back later.

You helped me develop a love for good books.  Both by providing them, and by your example of reading them!   I love the way you are always reaching out to others.  All growing up, you were always taking in so many .  

Mom, I love how much you love life!  Anything that’s happening, you want to be there and experience it.

And capture it too!  What a great way to live!

But most of all, dear Mother, I am so indebted for you for your righteousness.  Your testimony.  Your prayers.  You stand firm in what’s right.  No question, we will live the gospel!  Such a great heritage you have given me, and all the generations to come! 

So much love,

Marlene

Dear Grandma,

As a think of what I could say as a personal tribute to you, my wonderful Grandma, I honestly do not know where to begin.  I feel like my life is abundantly blessed every day by the wonderful legacy you have helped pass on to me.  Where would I be if it weren’t for your enduring testimony and love of the Lord as you raised your family?  Thanks for teaching my mother, Marlene, so that then she could then teach me.  I’m grateful for you for so many reasons, but here are some that stand out at this point in my life:

Consistency in the Gospel – Thank you for your undeviating testimony, expressed directly in your Richardson Review letters and by example in the way you live day to day.  Your consistent, unwavering resolve to do what is right strengthens mine.  The example of your valiant fulfillment of your callings, acceptance of mission calls, and personal daily devotionals has not gone unnoticed.  Thanks.

Appreciation of our Heritage – I feel such a connection with our ancestors because of the stories you have passed on.  Thank you for telling us about your parents and grandparents (and beyond) whose examples make me want to be a better person.  I recently named my new little daughter Annalie Love, in hopes she will look to you, her Great-Grandma Lavona, and to her ancestor Agnes Love Flake for righteous examples of faithful womanhood.

Journal-Keeping – I remember the special journal I got from your bookstore, embossed with my full name on the cover.  You are such a great example of diligent journaling and record-keeping, as we have been counseled to do.  I’m sure you have received much inspiration from “writing it down”, and my goal is to follow your good example.

Building of Others’ Self-Worth – Thanks for your love and support through my years of growing up.  Thanks for taking pictures of me!  My mom told me your secret:  Sometimes the main goal for taking a photo of someone isn’t necessarily for later, it’s what it accomplishes right then.  “Wow, I’m important enough for her to want to take a picture of me?” the person thinks as he or she smile for one of your pictures, and feels worthwhile.  Am I right?  You have made so so so many people feel important.  And not just through photos—I’ve noticed how you keep in touch with people whose lives have intertwined with yours through the years, and I’ve been impressed by that.  Thank you for showing your love and interest in my own little children and building their self-confidence now.

Setting of a High Standard of Excellence – I remember being so excited to receive a book as a gift from you.  I appreciate your love of good literature.  Thanks for passing this on to your descendants, along with your love of good music.  Thanks for encouraging me in my studies and learning.  I remember feeling so loved when you came to my BYU graduation.  I was so proud to be a teacher like you, yet I felt like such a novice when you came to my classroom to help and showed the love of a wonderful, knowledgeable, experienced teacher.  You were a great teacher for all of us grandchildren at each “Grandma School” session, too.  Your and Grandpa’s “Back-to-School” fireside lessons are some I will not forget.  Thank you for making us each feel that you are on our team, and are celebrating our successes while encouraging us to reach higher toward good goals and spiritual excellence.

I feel so blessed as your oldest granddaughter.  I want you to know, Grandma, that I love you very much.

Love, 

Melanie Ann (Ellingson) Hopkins                                                                                                                        June 2013

What I admire about Grandmother Richardson is that she spends all of her time and resources to be with her family and to serve them!  Thank you for being such a Christ-like example to all of us!

Love, Spencer Stradling

Ever since I can remember, Grandma Richardson has been one of my favorite people.  I remember canning tomatoes, having swim parties, sleep overs, collecting rubberbands from paper routes, Grandma School, crafts parties, Halloween parties with Grandma's special story, watching conference, etc, all with my Grandma.  Every time I had the opportunity to be with her, I remember thinking (even at a very young age), that whatever it was, whatever we were doing, it always mattered to Grandma and it was special to her.  Things mattered, time mattered, and I mattered.  I always had a place that I belonged in her life.  Every moment is always lived to its fullest.  I admire her so much and have been buoyed up by her strength and testimony many times in my life.

Love, Bonnie Stradling

One of the things I admire most about Grandmother is her example of enjoying life by living it to the fullest. She insists upon making the time and effort to surround herself with the people she loves.

Jordan

Grandmother Richardson,

 You are one of the happiest people I know. I am so grateful to be a part of your family.  I truly admire your ability to talk to anyone and to share the gospel with them.  You are such a wonderful example of a hard working missionary, as Jordan and I would someday like to serve a mission.  You can carry on a conversation with anyone and you make ever one in the room feel like they are your favorite person.  Thanks for all you do and for the wonderful example you have set for many. 

Love you!  Kaitlin

Dear Grandma,

I feel so very fortunate to have grown up near your home, since it has blessed me with many, many memories with you.  From Grandma School, to sleepovers, and swim parties, I have many fond memories of you and Granddad.  I look up to you in many ways, but most especially I am amazed at your great capacity.  Somehow you make it to almost every single baby blessing, baptism, high school graduation, mission farewell or homecoming, wedding, and college graduation; all in addition to your busy schedule of service and missionary work.  Each week as I read your Richardson Review,  I am always so amazed at how much you fit in in one week’s time.  I also love the way you make each one of us grandkids feel so loved.  You never miss calling on a birthday.  I will never forget how excited you were to hold our little Maylee for the first time at Colby Beck’s open house.  It meant so much to me to see how much you loved your little great-granddaughter.  I always cherish our phone conversations and the great encouragement you give me.  I sure could never have asked for a better Grandma!  I love you Grandma!

Love,

Dallin

Dear Grandma,

        How you do all you do I will never know. Thanks for never ceasing to lead our family in righteousness. One of my favorite things about you is your testimony and how you love to share it with others. You are a great missionary wherever you go. Thank you for your example of serving. You also love family and go to great lengths to keep us all connected. Your Richardson Review is fun to read every week. Thanks for all your love and support!

Love, Laura

I like how Grandmother Richardson is someone who is completely devoted to the gospel. I love how enthusiastic she is about her calling and responsibilities with the conference center.  I think it's really neat how she is constantly moving and learning in improving. She is and always has been very intelligent and very insightful. She is great about constantly growing. She is someone who is always actively striving to developed herself and explore new things. I love how she is so considerate of everyone in her very large family. She is always so good about making sure everyone is included and being there for everyone’s big events. She is incredibly good at keeping the family connected despite the many miles and circumstances that separate us. I think back on all the big events in my life I always remember Grandmother Richardson being there to support me.  Sure love you Grandmother!! -Carl

Grandmother Richardson,

You are one of the most energetic people.  You love living and doing.  Also your family is your priority and your good at loving and serving all of us.  I appreciate that you come to as many of the events in our lives as you can, including our plays, graduations, sports games and holiday celebrations.  Thank you for your testimony and example.  You are a good example of how to live righteously and serve others.   One of my favorite memories is when we would go to Grandma and Grandpa's house for Halloween, Back-to-school and all the other parties.  We always had such a fun time and created some fun memories.  Thanks again for being who you are and for all you do for me and your family.

Love, Gary

Grandmother is full of light. She is always happy and anxious to share in our happy moments. I love how her family comes first and sacrifices to be a part of our lives. She focuses on showing love and spending time in what matters most. Thank you Grandmother for your motivation and love in all your letters. I love reading them and want to be a missionary like you were in Mexico! You are my hero. 

Love, Hermana Rebekah Ellingson

I remember taking care of Grandpa as Grandma went to church. She always impressed me with the love she had for me and for him. It was a perfect example of their theme of a previous family reunion, "The answer is always more love". That theme struck my heart so deeply that I feel it is now a theme for my life! I really appreciate her dedication to truth and her courage to spread it to her posterity.

Love, Elder Jaron Ellingson

My dear Grandmother Richardson has a profound sense of loyalty to her family, which is manifest by her dedication to come to all of our events.  I think it is so cool that she planned out her life and worked for an airplane company so that she would be able to visit and support her family, spread all over the world. I also love that Grandmother is always up for some fun. She is forever willing to host sleepovers and when gathering people for a card game, you can always be sure Grandma will want to play. Grandmother takes every moment for what it is worth. She finds the joy in every moment, which must be why she takes so many pictures--she just wants to relive all of the happy times. Also, Grandma has a burning testimony. She has a relationship with the Savior, Jesus Christ, and because of that relationships, she wants to make sure her posterity always stay rooted in the Gospel. I remember her carefully planned "Family Night" type lessons at each of our sleepovers. Lavona Richardson is a great lady. I love her so much. I hope that I can be as cool as she is when I'm a Grandma. 

Love, Emily

I’ve loved having grandma live so close to us. Because of our close proximity, I can always expect to see her sitting in the front row with her camera close at hand whenever I’d have a concert, play, and sporting events. I also can always look forward to grandmas back to school, Halloween, and Christmas parties where she give us great school year advice, present her infamous Halloween story, or had out gifts to each one of us. Another thing that I loved was when grandma came with our family one summer as we toured the church history sites and visited family. It was so fun to have her there to add her amazing insights and to be able to talk with her and learn more about her. I’ll never forget these amazing memories that I have of Grandma Richardson!

I love you,

-Quinn

My Grandmother Richardson is a standard of love and care for all people. In my personal life, she has given me the attention required for my most efficient growth. Her want to serve shone true not just through her influence to the community, but within the plethora of children and grandchildren she helped raise. The attended concerts, the biannual cousin sleep-overs, and the regular dose of get-togethers fly high upon her substantial to-do list. When not serving the Lord with dentistry in Indonesia to touring in Salt Lake, her commitment of genuine care and concern for her posterity always shines through. Taking continuous, well-placed, and sometimes redundant pictures is just her way of freezing the happiness of others--and ultimately--her own. If--after all her efforts to help, support, and love her grandchildren as she does her Master; if we haven't fully felt her unconditional love--at least we have all learned how to smile big for her camera.

Thank you for showing us the example of how to live with love. 

Love,Kyle

I am so glad that grandma took so many pictures. I always know that she will be at my concerts, sports, and all the special things I am doing. Plus I am always able to think ahead to the parties that has for Halloween, Christmas, and back to school. I’m so glad that I have her legacy to look up to and remember. I Love you so much Grandma Richardson! Thank you for being my Grandma!

Love,

Tyler

Thanks for letting me go to the Reunion.  I really liked it! I guess it was kinda fun meeting all of my  Mom’s cousins. 

I really like such a great person you are.  I hope I’m like you when I grow up.

I love you,

Ryan

Beck Tributes to Grandma Richardson

From Colby and Kelsi: Grandma Richardson is one impressive lady. I sit in awe thinking about the energy she has after all these years, especially considering raising so many kids and being so dedicated to their lives and their children's lives. She exemplifies a loving mother who cares so much about her family to the core.  

I am honored to be part of such a rich heritage, and I am very thankful for Grandma Richardson's commitment to the gospel and her desire to bring her whole family to Christ. It is inspiring to see her travel back and forth from Arizona to Utah to fulfill her duty to Heavenly Father. We love you Grandma! 

From Jamie and Garrick:   

Grandma is an incredible woman, she impresses all that she comes in contact with. Between her early bird hours, travelling the world to visit family and friends, and actively fulfilling church callings that require her time and energy. She can always be found with lots of energy and concern for those she loves. I've loved the example Grandma has set of putting the gospel and her family as the only important thing. Thanks Grandma for all that you do for me and my family. I love you and I'm so happy that you're so actively involved in our lives.  

From Kasey and Emily: Of all my grandparents, I got the most genes from Grandma Richardson. It's funny to me how you really can see Grandma in every one her kids and grand kids. Grandma's got some good genes! 

Grandma is a very good example to me of putting family and the Church first and letting everything else figure itself out. I can't believe how good of a job she's done in raising her kids and influencing her kids and grand kids to put those two priorities, family and the Church, first in their lives, as well. Even though this is an attempt at paying tribute to Grandma, the real tribute is the devotion of her posterity to the Savior and each other. Love ya, Grandma! 

From Dallas: Grandma is one of the most impressive people that I know. She's extremely energetic for the things that are important to her. The best time I had with Grandma was when Travis and I got to go visit her in Mesa for Thanksgiving. She had a very carefree attitude about her that was fun to be around.  

What impresses me the most about Grandma is that all her energy is motivated by spending more time with her family and serving in the Church. You have to step back and see how wonderful this family is, and once you do, you realize that came from two loving parents. Grandma and Grandpa have created something remarkable and should feel honored by the lives their posterity is leading. 

From Carrie and Bret: Grandma's love and devotion to her family is an inspiring example to me.  I am amazed that with the number of grandchildren that she has, she has never missed a birthday or major event of mine.  She is a strong woman who has created an amazing heritage for me to follow. I truly hope that I will have the same energy as I strive to raise a strong family like she has done.  

From Skyler and Rebekah: Grandma is a very special person and is a lot of things to a lot of people. Grandma is a very positive, energetic person and that is contagious. She’s fun to be around, enjoys playing games, and loves learning. The thing that impresses me the most about Grandma is how important family is to her. Every single child, grandchild, and great-grandchild has to feel loved because Grandma makes such a special effort to establish a relationship with everyone. She goes above and beyond to travel and be there for major events. We are very lucky that she is able to do that. Grandma has always been a great role model and her strong testimony is something that brings us strength. 

One funny story about Grandma is when we were flying to San Francisco and had a layover in Phoenix. We were walking to our gate and randomly saw Grandma taking pictures of the airplanes parked in the lot. It was a pretty funny sight! But we spent an hour or so just talking with Grandma and she took lots of pictures of our kids as they were playing. Grandma loves her camera and I think the pictures she takes represent all that she loves about life; family, nature, important buildings, and yes, even airplanes. She is a funny lady and we love her! 

From Miriam:  My mom is such a wonderful lady.  She was the perfect mother for me.  She was and is always my cheerleader and always pushing me to be better.  She made each one of us feel so special even though we were in a very large family.  She made time to support us and pray with us and attend our special events.  She made sure we were all the best we could be.  She continues to show us how our priorities should be:  gospel, Heavenly Father, then family.  I so admire her for her passion to learn the gospel and live it and then to share it.  I love how family is so important and she has dedicated her life to attending her children, grandchildren, and now great grandchildren’s special events.  Because of her hard work and dedication and passion for gospel and her family, she has a very successful family.  Each child and grandchild and great-grandchild loves the gospel and is working hard to live it.  Thank you for this legacy of teaching us the most important things in life.  Because of you and Dad, you will have a large posterity strong in the gospel and a forever family.   

From Tony: Not sure how you go about describing mom 

Energetic, like the energizer bunny, keeps moving a mile a minute even when the years keep passing by 

Doer - has so many things going on, hard to keep track of where she is or what event she is at but does so much in a given day that dazzles the mind.  She still keeps us as the rest of us keep aging. 

One more - One more picture, can't think of a person who loves taking more pictures of her family, Heavenly Father's creation, or an important event simply to create a long lasting memory. 

Steadfast - There is no doubt in any of her posterity her position about the Gospel, she lives and teaches it day by day. 

Server - Once again through example, she continues to serve in any way she can - the church, her family, and anyone else is in need of help. 

These are only a few things that describe mom - her character, her belief, and who she is.  We have all benefited from her example.  May the light keep ticking brightly within her and we thank her for standing strong in the faith and example to all of what truly matters most. 

 Love Tony 

From Kayla: I've always looked up to you Grandma, and how dedicated you are to your family and I love how you are always here for the special events in our lives. Thank you for always supporting me my whole life and showing me how important family and the gospel is in your life. You are a tremendous example to me and I'm grateful for all the times you've sacrificed to come out and visit me. You are a wonderful person and I'm proud to call you my Grandma. 

just a couple of super good family pictures from the Richardson reunion

 These family pictures turned out fabulous with such gorgeous scenery.  It's just breathtaking!!!  Russ and Margie did such a fabulous job planning the Richardson reunion.  We're so grateful to them for all of their efforts and sacrifice.  We LOVED being together!  So grateful for all of those who were able to come and know that if you couldn't make it this year, you were missed!  We loved each member of the Jay Richardson family and we're so glad you are a part of our forever family!!!!

Remember Who You Are By Amy Richardson

It’s so hard to believe that 2 years ago my dad passed away. I will always remember my dad 
• Answering my billion “why” questions and teaching me how to eat sunflower seeds properly while driving to Utah. We always drove at night time so I would stay up all night during our drive to make sure he stayed awake.
• Finding a need for me to have braces in 3rd grade because I felt left out when Margie and Melvin got them. 
• I loved watching M.A.S.H with him while snuggling before bedtime. 
• Letting me tag along with him as he did outside chores and having the patience to teach me along the way
• Making me a cucumber and ranch sandwich when I would come home from school at noon and taking a quick 10 min nap.
• Meeting him on Alameda and College after he got off work to walk the rest of the way home. I was always so eager to see him and tell him all about my day.
• Taking the time to learn how to part my hair perfectly so I could put relaxer on it and holding the mirror for me every morning so I could have the perfect hair do.
• Waking me up in the morning by tinkling the bottom of my feet, while telling me it was time to get up.
• Catching for me in the early morning so I could practice my pitching and never complaining about how hard I threw.
• Always making an effort to run from work to watch me play soccer, softball or perform in marching band during halftime football games.
•He had a way of making my friends always feel welcomed and never hesitating to throw a pool party with hamburgers and watermelon.
• Telling me before I would leave to remember who HE was.
• Letting me act grown up when all he wanted was for me to stay young
• Allowing me to hide behind him when my shyness would overcome me but at the same time reminding me if he had always been shy he wouldn’t have met my mom.
• And always believing in me when I didn’t and making me feel like I could do anything!

Your baby girl will ALWAYS remember who you are!

Passing of a great man

Ray wrote this shortly after the passing of Jay Richardson:

I was present when my father, Jay Richardson, peacefully passed away in his home on the morning of May 30, 2011.  It was the first time I have ever seen a person die.  He was surrounded by my mother and 8 of his 11 children.

Summary of my impressions:

* A tribute to my mother's wonderful care of Dad.

* Dad had a great heart!

* Watching a righteous man die was a beautiful moment.

* Tough to accept inevitability of death.

* Dad's influence will be even stronger with us now.

* God's ways are not man's ways.

* Dad ALWAYS brought us together.

* One regret, mended by the power of music.

More in depth impressions from the events that passed:

* Dad died directly from the effects of Alzheimer's Disease. In the end, his brain was so full of tangles that it literally stopped telling other organs how to eat, how to drink, and how to breathe.  Typically, people with Alzheimer's die from some other cause, such as from a bad fall or from pneumonia.  But Dad was cared for so well by Mom that none of these other things happened to him, instead he died in the most natural way possible.  Mom's decision to care for him to the end was also truly inspiring.  She lovingly kept him at home, performing many hard tasks and accepting the psychological effects on herself, instead of choosing an easier path of having him stay in a care center.

* My Dad proved that he had a great heart literally as well as figuratively!  In the end, it kept beating long after the rest of his body shut down.  Even after going 3 1/2 days without food and water, his heart kept going strong. This was unexpected since he had experienced a heart failure almost 2 years ago and was given a pacemaker at that time.  We always knew that Dad had a great heart figuratively (full of love for others) but he proved it literally too. I learned that heart failure actually often does not result from a bad heart but from other causes too. (We wondered what the pacemaker would do as he neared death. Research shows that the pacemaker only works as long as the heart does so it doesn't prolong or shorten death.)

* I had mixed feelings about facing death. On the one hand I wanted to be there when he died to show my love and support, but on the other hand I really didn't want to be there.  It all sounded scary, plus morbid to be waiting for him to die, but in the end it was a peaceful passing.  In the end, the way his heart kept beating for a long time, we really couldn't say what moment he died.  This was an incredibly beautiful way for Dad to die, with a calm and orderly transition into the spirit world, where we are sure that he was greeted by many loved ones, especially my two baby brothers who died in infancy.  We also are sure that he was greeted by the Savior who told him, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant!"

* We literally could have kept Dad alive.  It was the hardest thing for me to see him there, going without food or water day after day, and to realize that if we had Dad in a hospital, hooked up to IVs, we could have prolonged his life for a short time.  But my mother felt strongly that it would serve no purpose but selfish ones for us to keep him in such a state.  In the end he would have been a vegetable, and still would have died soon from further Alzheimer's complications. We had discussed this before, and agreed that this was best, but when it came to the moment where he had been not eating or drinking for 3 1/2 days, it was very hard to stick with the plan.  But mom knew what Dad wanted and made the courageous choice to stick with the chosen path.  At any rate, it was comforting to realize that in the end, he did not die of starvation but of other causes.

* It made me smile to think that the last thing Dad could digest was ice chips.  Just days before he died, he had no problem chomping on ice.  As a dentist, he had often warned how bad ice was for your teeth!  If he was aware of himself, he probably would have spit out that ice!

* For some reason, I kept thinking about the death theme prevalent in the Star Wars movies.  I could totally relate to Anakin Skywalker's declaration that he would figure out some way to conquer death.  I felt the same way when I felt determined to keep Dad alive even though it didn't make sense anymore.  It's nice to realize that Jesus Christ is the only person who did figure out how to conquer death.  We love you, Jesus, and are thankful for your sacrifice on our behalf so that we will live again!

* The other Star Wars analogy I was thinking about: Obi Wan Kenobi declared to Darth Vader that dying would just make his influence more strong than it had ever been.  Similarly, now that Dad has passed on, we are free to remember him for all the great things he taught us and hopefully to feel the influence of his spirit encouraging us to be the best we can be.  His poems will forever influence us.  This is the way I will think of Dad, not as the Alzheimer's patient that couldn't remember anything anymore.  The force will be with us -- always!

* In matters of life and death, God has His own timing.  Family members learned that lesson while Dad took several more days to die than we thought he would.  (Talk about mixed emotions! Not knowing whether to hope Dad would die sooner vs. later.)  It proved to be a frustration when he didn't just die according to our timing, but God has His reasons.  We were blessed to have Dad a little longer, to give us a chance to think more about the purpose of life.  In the end we felt very fortunate that Dad died when he did, because there was a very narrow window of time when all family members would be able to be present (from literally around the world) for the funeral and burial.  We were blessed to also have many extended family at the burial due to prior plans for a family reunion.  It was a wonderful thing to have mother, all 11 living children, and 49 of 64 grandchildren at the funeral!

* Dad seemed to bring us together in all that he did.  Whenever we would ask what he wanted for his birthday, he always replied: "A happy family!"  He brought the family together for several years as we dlearned to care for him and really learned to work as a team.  Similarly, his passing really brought us together, both in the last days of intensive care, and in carrying out a beautiful funeral. Now we'll count on his help from beyond the veil.  Thanks Dad!

* My one regret is that we didn't get a moment to talk to him plainly in his last moments, to tell him that we loved him and that we'll miss him.  But then again, we got lots of these kind of moments over the past several years where we shared our love for him and felt his love right back.  Just before he died, there were special moments when he gave mother a kiss and another when he showed joy at our singing "Brightly Beams Our Father's Mercy" -- that was his spirit shining through to tell us that he loved us too!

Background story:

My Dad has suffered with Alzheimer's Disease for the past several years.  It first became noticeable in April 2007 although he showed small signs of memory difficulties for a few months before this date.  Mother chose to care for him at home for the next 4 years, which proved to be a challenging task and a true labor of love.  Several milestones occurred as his condition worsened.  In particular, his care became much more difficult in September 2010 and a plan was devised for several people to visit each day to help take care of Dad.  

On Monday, May 23, we noticed a couple of changes in my Dad. The hospice nurse came on a regular visit and surprised us with the declaration that he was beginning the journey towards dying and that we needed to be prepared for him to die sometime within the next couple of weeks.

Tuesday was what is known as a "rally day", a day where the dying person rallies enough strength for one more day of alertness before quickly deteriorating in death.  This proved to be the last day where he was awake for most of the day, although deep in the haze of Alzheimer's, he could not really respond to our visits with him.  I was asked to give him a blessing.  I felt prompted to say that he had a few days left -- although at that moment it really seemed like he would die very soon.  I spoke of finishing the work left for him, which I believe was to bring us together as a family one last time as we served him.  I declared that he left a great legacy as one who faithfully lived according to God's will.

The next several days, several family members felt the urgency to assist with his final care.  Amy and I both had people at work who allowed us to take time off as needed much of the week.  Miriam (a nurse) came from Iowa on Tuesday, Melvin (a doctor) came from Utah on Wednesday, and Ken (a doctor) also came from Utah on Thursday.  Their help was invaluable in these last days of care for him, as we became overwhelmed with all the tasks of caring for him.  Rauna and Marlene (in town) came often to help too.  The first scare came on Wednesday afternoon as Dad suddenly experienced apnea (long periods of time without breathing).  After this, we decided to stay with Dad around the clock, stationing at least one person by his side by taking shifts throughout the night so that we could care for him and administer medicine as necessary.  Dad would hold a hand offered to him, although the grip weakened day by day.

As the days continued with Dad still with us, we enjoyed our time together with him and each other.  There were a few things that we would quickly step out of the house for, but we would hurry right back to be with Dad again.  We spent so much time together that we called this week "Family Camp"!  Grandchildren called and stopped by, leaving touching thoughts as they said their last goodbyes to him.  We were fortunate to have two of our missionaries call and talk to him from Chile and Bulgaria.  We also did some planning ahead for the funeral and tribute talks, and really enjoyed looking through lots of Dad's inspirational writings. But these were also emotionally difficult days for us, not knowing if his next breath would be his last, not sleeping or eating well, and trying to figure out what to make of the situation -- his body was shutting down, but his heart was still going strong.  There were a few things that we would quickly step out of the house for, but we would hurry right back to be with Dad again.  Mom's church friends were kind enough to bring food to us, as we certainly didn't feel like preparing food.  A sober moment was when my brothers and I went to buy new temple clothes for Dad to be buried in.

There were a couple of moments of greater clarity for Dad that week. One time on Wednesday he perked up and gave mother a hug and kiss.  Another special moment came on Thursday morning.  We sang "Brightly Beams Our Father's Mercy" (a beautiful hymn with barbershop-style harmony).  Dad surprised us by clapping his hands when we completed it. This was truly remarkable since he was deep in the haze of Alzheimer's Disease and had not really responded much for weeks.  We sang it again and this time he even said something like "That's good!"  Later that morning Ken was asked to give him another blessing.  He gave a powerful blessing, blessing Dad to enter his rest as his work was now complete.  He declared that God would soon say "Well done, thou good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of thy Lord!"  He foretold the work in store for Dad in the spirit world, in particular to perform a great work as a missionary.

We learned all about caring for a dying person.  To help alleviate the pain, we were able to give him morphine as needed.  When he stopped ingesting food and water, his lungs and throat began to fill with fluid, leading to a scary sound known as the "death rattle".  We were able to use medicine to dry his throat so that he would not literally die of drowning.  It surprised me how many times we needed to clean him, even after no more eating or drinking, as his body kept removing toxins.  We also turned his position to avoid bed sores and help with his breathing.

Dad slept non-stop from Thursday around noon until Sunday evening, going without food or drink.  As the time passed, we kept wondering if death was imminent.  But Ken noted Dad's strong heart and shared his insight that Dad wouldn't die on demand, instead passing away possibly when we least expected it -- so we should just relax.  We were certainly given lots of time to think about mortality and God's ways.  Sunday evening Dad surprised us by suddenly opening his eyes for two minutes, but it was a stare with the look of a man who was no longer present anymore. The family slowly gathered. Margie flew in from Korea to be with us.

Then on Monday morning, he opened his eyes one last time.  Mother sat next to him and held his hand.  He then closed his eyes and took several deep breaths about 20 seconds apart.  He then stopped breathing entirely.  We quickly called our siblings who weren't present that this was probably the end.  His heart continued beating faintly for quite a while after his breathing stopped.  My sister Amy took his passing the hardest, finally sobbing uncontrollably on his chest as it became clear that this was the end.  But then peace prevailed again.  Even 20 minutes later my brother detected a heart murmur, but eventually that was gone too.  We didn't want this moment to pass, but we took turns holding his arm, feeling his warmth, and giving him kisses even though he had now passed on.  Joann arrived from Ohio just a few minutes after he passed on, but also enjoyed a few moments with him.  It was a peaceful passing of a giant of a man.

1999 reunion; Grandpa's patriarchal blessing

This is an email dated 4/19/99 from Melvin planning our Richardson reunion with a bunch of fun historical skits.  It's a good timeline! 

Below is a copy of Dad/Grandpa's patriarchal blessing, dated March 19, 1950

"My Dad", by Vernon Richardson (written Dec. 2012)

MY DAD

A warm smile, a pat on the back, I knew dad was there with me.
He'd been there, felt it, and lived it.  Knew both life's challenge and glee.

My dad was a quiet man.  Self assured but nearly silent.
When he spoke, you listened.  His signal was clear when it was quiet.

Since last year, dad's gone for awhile.  No warm "hello" when I call home.
We can't talk 'bout the "suns" or recent travels to Virden or Rome.

No new poem to cherish.  No one to mow my lawn or baby to hold.
You're so missed, Dad.  But I'm sure you're busy bringing all to God's fold.

Now I look above my desk and see a picture of you and me.
That warm smile, that pat on the back.  I know you're still there beside me.