Halloween was a special holiday for Tim. It was his chance to become his favorite television or comic book superhero, such as the Red Power Ranger or Spider-Man. When he was a baby, it was the costumes that were cute and funny – a puppy-dog, Barney the Purple Dinosaur, or a cowboy. As he got a bit older, the costumes became a little more elaborate – a vampire, the Grim…

     I searched for the last 20 years for my mother Ruth E. Bubier. I along with 3 other siblings were all told that our mother had died in 1974. To our surprise a week I found my mother through an obituary online and also found out we had 3 more siblings. Our mother also had one child that had passed.

So now instead of just 4 of us there were 8 with only 7 now surviving. My Mothers Name was Ruth E. Bubier of Ipswich Mass.

     A week ago one of my friends said to try and…

Plans are underway for a military family bereavement study, according to the Military Times. The proposed 5-year study – the first of its kind – would focus exclusively on military families and the impact of death – whether in combat, by suicide, or due to…

I lost my  son on Aug. 30 one day after his 32nd birthday  He passed away in his sleep. But. we still don't have any answers as to why.  I miss his so much.  We were very, very, close.

Sometimes I feel like I am going to lose it and all I do is cry.

It’s becoming more common for people to get involved in their own obituaries, but it happens in varying degrees. I once wrote an obit for an elderly doctor who had Parkinson’s; he hired me to collaborate with him to make sure every detail in his accomplished life was correct before the time came. His stories and accomplishments were told in the traditional third person. He didn’t die…

Today I sit thinking about my father who sadly lost his battle with hardening of the arteries in August 2004 and my younger brother who sadly took his life in May 2007. The holidays are fastly approaching and most of my family has left the small town in which we grew up and soon our family home will be sold. I am having a difficult time putting this into perspective. I miss them so badly and still want to honor them but I feel as if there is so much change going on that I am having mixed…

How do you cope with the death of a child? How do you endure heartbreaking loss that knocks you down and affects you emotionally, mentally, physically? How do you plan the funeral, take care of all the final arrangements for your child? How do you do all of this – and still go to work everyday?



Grieving is hard work and takes a toll on emotional, physical, mental health. Some…

This is my first blog on Legacy and I just want to say I am honored to be part of this group.  The pain of losing a soul mate is harder than anyone will every understand unless they've gone through it.  As part of my healing process, I started a blog for widowed men and I have been writing a mini biography about my wife which I am sharing on the blog.

Please visit…

Our friend Goldie Bright is making "awareness" ribbons and key chains and selling them for $1 a piece.

Proceeds from the sale of yellow items will go to the Armed Forces Relief Trust; pink items to the Susan G. Komen Foundation; purple to the Twin Towers Fund; orange to the ASPCA; and blue to the "Sarah Rose Catherine Broeder Memorial Fund" for the NCCH Auxiliary Scholarship.

If you would like to order an awareness ribbon or key chain for one of these causes, please contact…

Q. My cousin just died, leaving his family high and dry. Money management wasn’t one of his talents, and he left no insurance. His wife is disabled, and their son is unemployed. Funeral expenses will more than wipe out what little savings there are. I know it’s incredibly tacky, but I think they should request monetary donations instead of flowers from people to help pay the funeral costs. Is there a tactful way to ask for money? 

There are times when…

Routinely, but sadly, the news reports of residential emergencies—a fire in a family home, regional fires destroying dozens of homes, tremendous storms and flooding. Some of you reading this have experienced home disasters firsthand, living through a frantic evacuation, severe loss of home and personal items, and the uphill climb of rebuilding. All this can…

We are planning a Life Celebration for Gene, his very close personal friends and "musical" associates have been beyond amazing in putting this together and it is quickly approaching.  I must admit I am quite anxious about it because it will be very difficult to be at this event where my brother usually is singing and he will be the one memorialized by these wonderful people.  His voice will never be heard again, (not in person) and I am so sad.  I know all the obvious points about…

   As I remember it the day that leah was born was a bright sunny spring day.  Carol and I lived in Westerville Ohio at the time, so we went to the local hospital Mount Carmel St. Ann's for her birth.  What a difference  from when her brother Michael was born at Grant medical in downtown Columbus. The doctors and nurses were very kind and attentive at St. Ann's not that they were not at Grant but they were very busy.  So busy that Carol was unable to get an epidural. Well at St. Ann's that…

Dear Faithful Friends,



Want to make yourself miserable today? Of course you don't!! But if you did, a great way would be to try to figure out what and where you are going to be in your life a month from now, a year from now, 5 years from now --- and if you will be ok, and how things will EVER possibly work out and if everything is just going to come crashing down one of these days --- to worry worry worry.



But you…