Layne's Blog: Grandpa's Memorial

Back in early October, my Grandpa Henry passed away. On November 3rd, we held a memorial service for him in Aberdeen where we all got together as a family along with many of his long time friends. Friday night, I drove in to Aberdeen for a big family dinner at the big yellow mansion where my grandma Dorothy grew up. The owners were gracious and opened their home to us for a delicious salmon dinner (Grandpa's favorite). Despite the circumstances, it was nice to see everyone and be together. It was also fun to catch up with my cousin Bryan and meet his girlfriend Jamie. She too is a dancer, and I've heard a lot about her from him. She is very sweet, and they are just too cute together. Dinner was great, and we topped it off with some local homemade blackberry pie.

all set for dinner

pies, nom!

After dinner, we headed to the hotel for the night. The next morning the family met at the cemetery where we had just been a couple months prior for my Grandma. We had a nice little ceremony where we placed Grandpa's ashes in next to Grandma's, and my dad and his brother and sisters all said a few nice things.

We then all went to the Aberdeen Log Pavilion where the memorial was being held. Lots of people came, turns out my Grandpa knew everyone! His long time work at the Port of Grays Harbor made a big impact in Aberdeen, so he was well-known and respected. My cousin Michael had put together a slide show of photos of my Grandpa and our family, so that was played first. Then everyone had a chance to speak and share stories. It was neat hearing everyone talk about my grandpa, he really was a great guy. My dad finished by sharing some stories of his childhood and the last visit he had with my grandpa which was nice to hear.