Sunday morning (June 12, 2011) my sweet grandpa Schroeppel passed away. This weekend has been full of sadness. I was blessed to be with my mom, my aunt kim and my cousin meg when I got the news. We stayed up on Saturday night until about 2 am crying and talking, waiting to hear the news that he had passed. On Sunday morning at around 7:30 we heard that he was gone. We were all in a hotel room together in Tempe because we had gone to Les Mis the night before. Our girls weekend wasn't quite what any of us had expected but I am still grateful we were able to cry together.
Monday morning we all headed up to St. George to attend funeral part 1. It was so emotional for me. This was the first viewing I had ever attended. This is my first grandparent pass away. The whole experience has been hard to handle. Thankfully though, my grandpa has lived such a great life and that gives me a lot of peace.
I came away from the funeral yesterday with a feeling of such love and gratitude for my grandpa. He is one AMAZING man who is loved and respected by so many people. My grandpa spent his life in service for others. My grandpa is one of the funniest guys I know. He is hilarious. Yesterday everyone talked about his wit and humor and that is one of the things I will miss most about him.
Although we were not able to be with him when he passed and did not get to say goodbye, I am grateful for a great visit I had with him back in Feb. He was in the hospital and we were just getting back from our San Fran trip. I decided to make us leave later than we wanted so I could just go say a quick hello to my grandpa in the hospital. I ended up staying for 2 hours, just me and him. We talked, laughed and joked. During my 2 hour visit I think my grandpa had 3 or 4 different visitors from his ward and neighborhood. These people all told me how much they love my grandpa and what a great man he is. I loved this visit and for me, it was such a sweet memory that I have with him. I am thankful I was able to spend that time with him.
Grandpa has been such a good grandpa to all of his 49 grandkids:) I know my grandpa loves all of us equally and we all feel special and loved by him. I think that is a pretty amazing thing especially with how many of us there is!
I will miss grandpa but I know I can see him again. I am thankful to be a part of such an amazing family. I have so many great cousins, aunts and uncles. I feel pretty blessed.
Saturday is the final funeral in Utah County. I am flying up on Saturday to be there for it. I am guessing there will be more tears shed in honor of such a great guy!
6 comments:
Sorry to hear about your grandpa passing Val :-( Deaths (particularly in families) are difficult. I'm glad you were able to have a good conversation with him in February; and it's such a blessing to know you'll get to see him again.
Hope you're finding peace. Love you and your family.
I am so sorry, Val. Losing a loved one is never easy. I'm glad you were able to be with your mom & cousin when you found out, though. He sounds like a great guy.
So, so sorry Val. You and your family will be in our thoughts and prayers! I'm so glad you get to fly to Utah to be with your family!
Love you!
I just got back from your grandpas viewing. it was good to see your moms side of the family. Your grandpa was a great man! love ya!
I'm also thankful you were able to spend that time with him earlier this year, I'm sure he appreciated that you took that time to spend with him. Such a great man!! I'm so lucky I got to know him for the 5-6 years that I did. I'm lucky to be a part of this amazing family. The reason you'll be in town again is unfortunate, but we're grateful to see you anytime we can. Love you all!!
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