Biographies of Our Forefathers

This holy and sacred ceremony would not be complete without taking a moment to briefly reflect on the 79 years of this woman, wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother we honor and remember today. In trying to capture the essence of her being, the description “totally dedicated and committed to the love, welfare and services of her fellow human beings” might capture it best. 

Loosing her mother at 18months, she was abandoned by her father and spent her early years in a New Jersey catholic orphanage where the harsh existence molded a woman of unquestionable faith in her god and religion, coupled with an incredible resolve to love and care for the sick, the aged and the less fortunate. This strength of character and the theme of service to mankind separated her from her pears and impacted and impacted not only on her immediate family but also on all who came in contact with her. 

Part of her legacy lives in the fact that she she leaves a husband who, although retired, served the people of Fayetteville in the Post Office for 23 years. A son who serves the citizens of Oklahoma by helping to reduce the trauma associated with fire and natural disasters, a daughter who serves the citizens of Kansas as a telephone operator patiently assisting people when they are normally not at their best, a son who serves this great nation by attempting to maintain peace in a world filled with war and chaos, and a daughter who serves the people of Arkansas by helping to bring new life, babies, into the world as a registered nurse. 

This legacy of service in her offspring is not by mere coincidence but because we flow from the blood of her veins, the faith in her heart, and the resolve born in that New Jersey orphanage. That impact extends to her 12 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Her impact on others can be best described by a short vignette I would like to share with you today. 

As many of you know she worked in the Doctor’s Building here in Fayetteville for almost 20 years. Once when I was returning from an overseas assignment to Japan, I came to town by myself and, as was my custom the first stop was always at the Doctors Building on Spring Street. On this particular occasion, something seemed different. When I went through her private entrance I quickly noticed a throng of patients lining the walls and the waiting room - but no nurses and no doctors, only my mother. When I asked her where they were she told me, “the doctors were at a convention, the nurses had the day off, but the patients would have no day off from their fear, pain and suffering.” She quickly put me to work lining up patients in rooms in order of their severity. She was dutifully and patiently attending mothers with ailing babies, mothers with ailing high school athletes, and young mothers to be, just to name a few. Most remarkable was the elderly couple who turned out to be farmers from south of town. The woman, at least in her 70s, summed the situation up best. When she learned I was her son, she said, “Young man, Miss Kitty has been keeping me alive for 10 years. I’ve got grandchildren to watch grow up and I’m just not going to miss it.” Her husband, short on words but long on candor, quickly chimed in that he was in great health but just came to town to see Miss Kitty, the Florence Nightingale of Northwest Arkansas.”  When he asked me if I know who Florence Nightingale was, I pointed toward my mother working on a patient in one of the closed rooms and said “Yes sir, she’s behind that door with Mother Teresa.” 

God allowed her over 50 years of helping bring life into the world, keeping people alive, and comforting them as they neared death. He gave us a woman who, for 79 years, demonstrated selfless, dedicated service and love for her fellow human beings. When her own health began to fade and she had to retire from nursing, God gave her Betty Faubus Hartman to help take care of her. Thank you Betty. 

More recently, when she had to be put in a beautiful nursing home in Springdale, the head nurse, unsolicited, described her to me as the most remarkable woman she had ever met and the model caregiver they all tried to emulate. On Saturday, the receptionist at the funeral home volunteered my mother had helped her two children into the world and poignantly described the times she had nursed them to health throughout their young lives. 

In some way she left a positive mark on everyone in this church. Several are quality doctors and nurses because of her example and influences. Each of us was affected by her mere presence. 

I believe it most fitting to close by relating the conversation I had just last night with her comrade for all those years, Dr. James K. Patrick. He emphasized how their practice was a true partnership. How he viewed this time as a time of joy. How he remembered her for three main things, her remarkable smile that positively affected everyone, her continuous return to her Catholic faith when times were difficult, and how there was only one description of her – a saint. 

God has peacefully taken her to his bosom. He has ensured her legacy for mankind will be endless. One of her grandchildren will now sing a song our mother taught her when she was eleven years old and approved just for this occasion.