Theresa

Theresa McLaughlin's funeral was yesterday.  She was 85 years old and died on November 1, 2013, All Souls Day. 

Hers was a life of service.  She attended what is now Canton Central Catholic and went on to Mercy Hospital's nursing school.  For many years she worked in a physician's office and then went into private duty nursing.

Theresa raised three children in Canal Fulton, in their home on Mapleview, the one with the huge oak in the front yard -- two daughters and one son.  She loved her family, her church, and especially, Theresa loved God.  This was a woman who exuded warmth and compassion.  She was a member of the church's bereavement committee, and knew something about grief having lost all of her siblings and in 1999 her husband, Bill.  He died on Thanksgiving Day.  She was also a member of the Altar and Rosary Society and often said the Rosary, a very misunderstood set of prayers that commemorate various times in the life of Jesus.

A quiet woman, she often served in the background, and never sought notice.  She was gentle and kind and when she saw something that needed to be done, she did it without fanfare.  In the later years, she spent time visiting others in nursing homes, especially at The Laurels in Massillon. 

Two of her children live a distance away, but one, her daughter Colleen, lives in Uniontown.  She and her mother were often together and they had a close relationship, one that was so obviously full of love.  One of Theresa's grandsons did the second reading at her funeral yesterday, Colleen's son, and he did a masterful job, reading from the Book of Revelations.

One of the strong pillars of SS Philip & James, Theresa and her husband helped to create a strong foundation.  She will be very much missed.

Father Kevin said that Theresa's way of serving others reminds him of St. Theresa, the Little Flower.  St. Theresa realized at a very young age that she didn't need to try and do big and huge things, but she could do many, many small things throughout the day for her precious Lord.  This saint teaches us much about living in the short life that she had.  She died at her convent in France of tuberculosis at age 24.

I really liked Theresa McLaughlin.  We talked a number of times over the years, and she was a neighbor as well as a friend.  My middle name is Theresa so we also shared that.  When we are asked in this life to do the will of God and help to call others to him, the Lord certainly must have smiled at Theresa.  Yesterday during her Mass, I imagined what Theresa might be seeing, the joy that she must be feeling.  And God saying to her, "Well done, good and faithful servant."