Christmas 2017

    Merry Christmas from the Blaneys!

2017 was a year of highs and lows for our family.  After a long, deliberate process Blaney Funeral Home was sold to a non-Blaney.  My brother, Mike, my sister, Mary Jo, and I decided it was time and in June we retired.  We have great confidence in the new owners (a Green Bay Area family) and have just as much confidence in the entire staff which was retained.  It is difficult to step away from a 40 year career but I look forward to spending more time with family and friends.  

The summer began with lots of time at the cottage with golfing, biking and kayaking on the agenda.  In June, Cathy's father had a wonderful party celebrating his 90th birthday.  It was great for him to be able to visit with his siblings, nieces & nephews, neighbors and friends.  He truly enjoyed the party.  This time spent celebrating his life and those he loved was especially precious as he passed away later that summer after multiple bouts of pneumonia.  He was a wonderful man who loved his family and they loved him.  You can read Kathleen's eulogy just below this blog post.

In early fall, Cathy and I decided to take our camper out of mothballs (figuratively, not literally).  We started thinking small as to where we should go, but by our October 1^st departure date, we had decided to check off one of Cathy's bucket list items - going to Vermont to see the fall colors.  We also spent time in Philadelphia, the Poconos, Gettysburg and Hershey, PA.  Being that far east, Kathleen was able to join us over two weekends.  The colors were beautiful and it was great seeing Kathleen!  Unfortunately, Erin’s school schedule made it impossible for her to join us. 

As I write this Cathy and I are planning a prolonged camping trip to Florida with a stop in The Villages to visit Bill Blaney who will be staying at Bill and Karen Early’s place. We hope that Kathleen and Erin can join us.  Kathleen is still working for the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and Erin is in her third year of working as a Social Worker at Washington Middle School in Green Bay.  They got together this summer and traveled to Ireland, Wales and England.  

That’s it for Blaney news for 2017.  If you have time, we’d love to hear from you.

                                                                                    Merry Christmas!

                                                                                    Ken and Cathy

Eugene R. Kolb

                                                        Eugene R. Kolb
                      June 14, 1927 - August 27, 2017

Gene's funeral was held on September 1st, 2017 at St. Mary's Catholic Church.  His entire family participated in his Mass.  Kathleen delivered a eulogy that described her grandfather's positivity.  

A few years ago, Grandpa and I were neighbors in East De Pere. Because we lived only a few blocks away from one another, we often found ourselves in the car together. Every time we crossed over the De Pere Bridge, my grandpa would comment on how beautiful the view was. It didn’t make a difference what season it was, what the weather was like or even if there was construction. Without fail, he would look out the window and say something along the lines of “Beautiful sunset tonight, huh?” or “Look at those trees!” or “The college sure is something under that snow.” My personal favorite was, and I quote, “You know, I’ve traveled all over the world, Kathleen, and the view from this bridge is the most beautiful of them all.” I’m not kidding. It got to the point where I began kind of egging him on because I got a kick out of the sincerity of the sentiment—it was like a new thought every time. We had been sharing this routine for about two years when my mom called me one night and said, “I was driving Grandpa home tonight and do you know what he told me? He said, “You know, Kathleen sure loves the view from this bridge.’”

My grandpa always had a way of seeing things as better than they really were. He referred to his childhood summers as a glorified day laborer as “Cherry Camp.” He reminisced about his military days the way one tells tales about travels with old friends. He once sat at a grade school band concert of mine and Erin’s, in a gymnasium of all places, and told my dad that if he closed his eyes he could hear the Wisconsin marching band. Every family dinner, every campfire, every O’Doul’s and every sunset over the De Pere Bridge was the best he had ever experienced. When my mom was planning of my grandpa’s 90th birthday party earlier this summer, I reminded her that even if only a handful of people showed up or we forgot the cake or there wasn’t enough food, Grandpa would remember it as the best birthday party anyone had ever had!

What a gift, to see things as better than they truly are! In a world that is imperfect, flawed, and at times downright ugly, my grandpa chose to see the beauty. In a time that values cynicism and indifference over passion, Grandpa unabashedly sought out the good. And he loved it all. He loved us all. In loving the world the way he did, he made it more beautiful, the same way he made the view from that bridge more beautiful, the same way he made us more beautiful. We would often facetime, and every single time we chatted, even at the end when my face was splotchy and eyes bloodshot from crying, he would look me straight in the eye and tell me that I looked beautiful. Grandpa’s love made each and every one of us beautiful and I have no doubt that if he was standing here right now, he would look out at this crowd and say that this is the most beautiful gang he had ever seen.

Grandpa embraced dying the same way he embraced living—with eternal optimism and utmost faith in his future. I find great solace in knowing that now Grandpa is in a place that is not only as beautiful, but even more beautiful, than even he could have imagined. And that is saying something.