A few weeks ago, on October 20 our world was changed forever. It was the day our Mom left her earthly body. How could she leave when she is so much a part of us? The way I’d like to tell it is..... she didn’t. She is here, in me and in you and you and you and everyone that holds her dear in their heart. She was called Mary Jo, Jo Jo, some called her Mary but most called her Jo, without the e. Her children called her Mom, Mother, then Grandma, Grandma Fuellenbach and then Great Grandma. She was given a lot of love by all of us but she taught us how to love. And we have loved her in return. Today, in her honor, we celebrate her life. It has been a wonderful life. Lets talk about the girl she was and the woman she became. Mom was born Mary Joy Eldredge to George and Martha Eldredge in Salt Lake City December 10, 1930. She lived there with her mother and grandparents until the family could be reunited with her Dad in San Francisco. Mom had an older sister, Edie and two younger brothers George and Paul. As a young girl Mom cared for her family when her own mother took ill. She learned the value of hard work by caring for patients in her Uncle’s hospital in Bingham Canyon near the Copper mine in Utah. She cared for her younger brother Paul just like a little mother. Paul and Mom continued to care for each other throughout their lives. She graduated from Lincoln High in 1949, went to San Francisco City College and married her high school sweetheart Moss in 1951. Mom didn’t have very long to be a young bride as I was born 9 months and 2 weeks after her wedding. Eighteen months later Bev was born and then Brad, Art and Ann who followed every other year so by the time she was 29 Mom had 5 children under 8. Busy she was! During the time she was having babies we moved from Richmond to Petaluma to Fremont. Dad was busy with getting his Master’s Degree, and starting a career in education so parenting and mothering was Mom’s main objective. And she did it with love. Dad liked order, liked to plan and follow a schedule. Mom was a little bit more spontaneous. She liked having fun. She would always ask “....but are you having fun?” Camping was one of the things we did as a family. We were made to believe that hauling water to wash dishes, sleeping on a bed of rocks and having to go potty in the dark in the woods was an adventure and that we were lucky to have such a grand vacation. She taught us how to make do with what you have, taught us how to be confident and how to get along. But most of all she taught us how to love. When Mom’s grandchildren started coming she opened her heart bigger--Jason, Shawna, Jeremy, Kristina, David, Julie, Janelle, Charles, Lisa, Bradley, Curtis, Jonathan, Brian, Grant and Evan. And a few of them have made her a great grandma 18 times over. And she has loved every single one. She loved sharing her work as a school librarian with her grandchildren. Mom liked her library to look like it was being used. She didn’t like a perfectly kept library. She liked to make it fun with a tarantula exhibit, doll exhibit, silkworm project and her famous Witches Cave. She entertained and shared her love of reading with thousands of students over the 20 years she was a librarian. In retirement Mom didn’t really retire. With Dad she found something that kept them busy and on the road. They traveled all over in the hunt for rustic treasures. They opened up the Memory Box in a collective and kept it stocked with collectibles and gifts. After Dad passed in 1996 the shop kept Mom happily engaged in the process of buying and selling. She loved all aspects of gifting, but she really loved giving gifts. She said it made her happy. That was her fun. Mom had a ready and willing companion in Ann after Dad passed away. Ann had come home to live in the early 90’s and she and Mom became housemates, travel buddies and shared the duties of the shop. Mom often said that she could not have stayed in her home without Ann and William’s help. We are blessed that they were able to give Mom that kind of support. We really need to say something about all the support Mom has had in the last few years. The Kaiser doctors and nurses that have helped Mom have been incredible. Along with them and the cards, flowers and visits of friends and family have kept Mom’s fighting and loving spirit true to her nature until the end. Mom had a wonderful, adventurous, complete life that was rich in spirit and love. Each of us were blessed with knowing her and loving her. The family hopes that you will share your story or memories of our Mom so that when we leave here today we will go with a feeling of the profound love of our Mother. Thank you for being here to share this with us.