Last Tuesday, my family suffered a tragic loss. Although we had been told it was coming, there was no preparing us for the loss of my Grandmother, Adeline Page Nafarrate.
Adeline Page Nafarrate, born on November 8, 1938 in Phoenix
Arizona, passed away quietly on Monday, July 8th, 2013. She was surrounded by her beloved husband Antonio
Nafarrate, her daughters Mary O’Malley and Susan O’Reilly and her
grand-daughter Katherine Cummings.
Diagnosed with colon cancer 20 years ago, Adeline never gave
up the fight for life. She lived through
years of extensive medical treatments including chemotherapy, broken bones,
hospitalizations and pain, yet she continued to be a devoted wife, mother,
grandmother and friend to all that knew and loved her.
Adeline was a homemaker during her marriage of 43 years, providing
a loving home for her husband and four children. She also volunteered at Kaiser Hospital, and
as a Friendly Visitor. Her volunteer
work as a Friendly Visitor spanned over a decade of weekly visits to residents
in nursing homes, highlighted by a close, ten year relationship with Lydia King. She was extremely proud to have won volunteer
of the year for her work with the Friendly Visitors. She was also very proud to have gone back to
school after her children were grown to obtain her Associate of Arts degree
from San Jose City College.
Adeline was the youngest daughter of Louis and Margaret Page. She is survived by her husband of 43 years Antonio Nafarrate, her
four children Mary O’Malley, Susan O’Reilly, Patricia O’Reilly and
Edward O’Reilly, her sisters Mary Wilson and Alice Vaughn, her grandchildren
Adeline, Katherine, Rachel, Thomas and David, and her great-grandchildren
Maiya, Hunter, Blake, Mikaila and Bobby .
She was deeply loved and will be missed beyond measure.
A memorial service will be held at 3:00 pm on Saturday, July
13th at Oak Park Hills Chapel located at 3111 N. Main Street, Walnut
Creek, CA 94597. Chaplain Andrew Karlson will officiate.
Following the service, Adeline’s life will be celebrated by
family and friends at a gathering at Zio Fraedos in Pleasant Hill, 611 Gregory
Lane.
The memorial service was beautiful, it meant the world to my family to see our friends and family who were able to make it and hear the loving words they spoke of her. Here is what I said;
Hello, my name is Katherine, Adeline was my Grandmother.
I always knew her as Grandma Max because when I was young she had a dog
named Max. So that’s just what us kids called her.
I have so many cherished memories of my grandmother, so many that it seems
impossible to narrow them down onto a piece of paper. She was a remarkable
& loving woman so I will do my best to express my love, gratitude and
admiration for her.
As a child, she often took my sisters and I on field trips to places
like the Rosicrucian Museum, The Rose Gardens, The Japanese Gardens, Happy
Hollow & the Babar Museum, She even rode the elephants with us at Marine
World. She helped us embrace life and find joy in everything.
While we always had fun, she also made sure that we had manners,
especially appropriate table etiquette. I remember her taking us to the mall
where the tables were set beautifully with fine china. She had my sister
Adeline and I sit down and taught us to dine properly, like ladies. When each
one of us girls turned 16, she through a tea party for each of us. This was a
very big deal and a cherished memory for all.
When I was about 21, my grandma heard I wanted to go to the Cher
concert and quickly bought tickets for the two of us. We had such a fun time, I
will never forget that day, the two of us dancing and holding hands.
Like everyone, my grandmother had times of struggle, but she never let
it affect us kids. She showed us the importance of being strong, independent
women. You saw it in the way she carried
herself, you heard it in the words she spoke, you felt it in how she
would interact with you. As an
adult, I would often sit and talk to her about life and how it was treating the
two of us. She always knew when I needed to hear the words, you’re a strong
woman, you’re a wonderful mother, and you’re a wonderful wife. I can see her
now lifting her arm with a closed fist as she said those words , as if to raise
me up and give me the strength I needed. When I told her I was expecting my
third boy, she laughed & said, “You’ve perfected having boys”
The last time I spoke to my Grandmother, I whispered to her, “I love
you more than you’ll ever know; you’re the best grandma in the world”. I hope
she’s looking down on me now, knowing that I miss her beyond belief, but I will
cherish her memory and continue to live life to the fullest because I know that’s
what she would have wanted. That’s what she taught me.
I don't know if my boys will remember my grandma when they get older, in fact, baby #3 never got the chance to meet her. I hope they can look back and read this one day, paired with the stories I will tell them about her throughout there lives, and know what an important woman she was to me. I will miss her forever.
~I love you Grandma
