“There is no amount of money or technology that can deliver the feeling one gets listening to “TAPS" being played for the family of a deceased veteran. To say it brings tears to one’s eyes in an understatement.”
Following a Funeral Mass at Our Lady of Grace Church, Dad received a Military Funeral Honors ceremony at Holy Cross Cemetery, in North Arlington, NJ by two uniformed military personnel that included the folding and presentation of the United States burial flag that was preceded by a Solo performance of Taps. The flag was then presented to my sister Josephine McAllister (accompanied by her husband Joe) who was deserving of such an honor. She was a devoted daughter who did the grocery shopping every Friday, coordinated with dad’s dedicated live-in caregiver, Marcelle John and dad’s physician, Dr. Joseph Pollak. Taps can be traced back to a French bugle tune from the early nineteenth century that called for “lights out.” That said, despite his passing the light of our father’s legacy will continue to shine on.
Following the burial service, we had a celebratory luncheon at El Cafone in Lyndhurst, NJ in his honor. It was the same place we held his 100th birthday dinner party last January.
Thanks again to the more than 600 condolences my family and I received from our "Facebook Friends and Family" and "Real Hoboken Friends and Family No Matter What."
Finally, I wanted to share an excerpt from an email by a nurse Luba from Promised Care awhile back after reading about upcoming honors dad was about to receive.
She wrote: “I have a confession to make: I’m in love with your father. His strength and his outlook at life is an admiration to me….I tell your father’s story to those who blame their circumstances for their failures. I have a great story to tell to inspire them about the future. It begins like this: ’There was an orphan boy [my dad] who grew up in various homes…but the most important point is what the boy has accomplished and his contentment with life at his age.”'
He truly believed the words of Abraham Lincoln who once said, “Most folks are as happy as they make their minds to be.”
Thank you dad and May You Rest in Peace. Your devoted children, Dennis, Josie, Michael and Steve.❤️
Postscript: The family wants to thank Rev. Alex Santora of Our Lady of Grace Church for delivering the eulogy, Father Torres for officiating the Funeral Mass and the Elks Lodge members for performing a “Lodge of Sorrow,” ceremony last evening at Failla-McKnight Funeral Home in Hoboken, NJ.
