Below is the tribute I gave at my Grandpa Peercy's funeral. He followed my blog and would often mention that I had not updated it. I regret that I got so behind in postings.







November 24, 2010

Grandpa Peercy was a knowledgeable man who loved to teach all that he knew. I have so many memories of my grandpa, so many that I could not possibly share them all at this time. But I will share with you a few. In second grade I remember we had a theme about kites. Grandpa had made some kites so he came to my class and shared with us his kites and we got to fly them. I was so proud of my grandpa!

He was not only a kite maker but he was also, as many of you know, a woodworker. He made so many things. I remember the wooden cradle he made for my dolls and the wooden money banks and the wooden Easter baskets and the list goes on. If you could describe to him what you wanted made he could make it for you.

The best memories I have of my grandpa are the two trips we took together to South Africa. Our first trip was in August 1996. It was my first time to apply for a passport and the first time to ever fly. A VERY long flight to take if you don't like to fly, but fortunately I loved flying! We had an eleven hour layover at London Heathrow Airport. I was excited to have so much time in London and had hope that we could take a tour of the city. So Grandpa asked an employee in the airport if it would be a good day to get out and see London. The man's response was it is rainy and cloudy today. My response, in my head of course, was 'isn't it ALWAYS rainy and cloudy in London?! So grandpa went by this man's word alone and we spent all 11 hours in the airport. We spent 3 1/2 weeks in South Africa and grandpa spent a few of those weeks helping compete an abolition block that would be used for showering facilities at Jackson's Ridge. My Grandpa was a hard worker!

We returned to South Africa in October 2008. On this trip he named me his traveling companion. At 83 years old he had some first time experiences. He held a boa constrictor, he rode and elephant and he held 2 baby lion cubs. What a memorable experience for him and for me!

To have traveled the world with my grandpa is a special "forever" memory that I will have. Because of those trips I gained a broader world view and my eyes were opened to the life of a missionary. And my grandpa had a part in opening that world for me! Who would have thought that the 2nd oldest of 6 children would have had an opportunity at 17 years old to fly across the world for the first time. But my grandpa made that a possibility and a reality for me. He continued to support me in all of the trips I was able to take in the last 15 years. I love you Grandpa and I thank you for all of the memories. You will not be forgotten!

I want to encourage each one of you to build a memory everyday! Memories help keep our loved ones near to us. When Grandpa passed away he took a trip to a place where he didn't need a passport or wheel chair assistance. His body is fully restored and he has been reunited with Grandma and is in the presence of our Lord. What a trip of a lifetime! Grandpa, as your traveling companion I was unable to take this trip with you but I know that you are being well taken care of and know that I love you and I will see you in Heaven!

Glen Canyon/Lake Powell and Bryce Canyon

I was invited to go camping with my friend Rachel and her family. Rachel and her daughter Kayla are friends from Indiana. Rachel lives in Prescott, AZ. Saturday, May 29th was her birthday. I went to Prescott and surprised her for her birthday. Then I followed her family to our first stop on our camping trip, Page AZ- Glen Canyon.
We camped at Glen Canyon Sunday night May 30th and Monday night May 31st. During our time at Glen Canyon we toured some caverns, went kayaking on Lake Powell and swam in the Lake and toured the Dam. It was really warm in Page, AZ.

On Tuesday morning we tore down our camp and packed up and headed to Bryce Canyon National Park.
We arrived in Bryce, UT around 2:00 in the afternoon. We toured all of Bryce Canyon, well at least we drove the 17 mile road where you can see all of the sites of Bryce Canyon. The stopping point is at 9100 feet elevation. There was even snow! It was much cooler in Bryce! At night we had to layer. We hiked one of the canyons. It is so pretty in Utah. We camped Tuesday night and Wednesday night in Bryce.
Thursday morning we packed up our camp and I loaded my car and made my journey back to Barstow. It took me 7 hours to get back home. Utah is so beautiful and so is northern AZ on Interstate 15. It is a pretty drive until you get 60 miles or so from Vegas, then it is just boring scenery :). Here are some more pictures to enjoy!

Our church is preparing for a military tribute May 15th & 16th. We will be having Admiral Vern Clark USN (Ret). He will be speaking Sunday the 16th. Saturday night on the 15th we will have a program that will include music where we will highlight all of the war eras starting with WW2. I will be singing as an Andrew Sister again this year. Lots of prep as well as many surprises are in store for this great event. Our purpose for this event is to honor those who have served our are currently serving our country. If you are reading this and you have served or are currently serving in the US military...THANK YOU!!!

I had the opportunity to go home March 18th through the 22nd to see my Grandpa Peercy. As you read from the previous post he has been pretty ill. He is doing ok. He is now back in Westminster which is a nursing home. I am praying that he will start gaining his strength back through physical therapy. While I was home I also got to go to my Great Aunt Carol's memorial service. She went home to be with the Lord on Tuesday March 16th. Please pray for her husband Carl and Carol's family who live in Texas.

One of my faithful blog followers is my Grandpa Peercy, who is pictured above. Please pray for him. He is in the hospital. He was told he had been losing blood and was suppose to have a blood transfusion on Monday. He ended up falling and had to be taken to the hospital where he later received a transfusion. He did fracture his hip when he fell. They will be putting some pins in it on Saturday, February 27th. I would greatly appreciate your prayers for him. Thank you!

I am doing well. I have been busy helping my church get ready for our Annual Business Meeting. There are reports that have to be done and the packets printed and graphs put into power point...etc. It has been a good week all together!

Once again I have to apologize for the delay in posting a blog. This picture I took just yesterday with my webcam. I am doing well. We just finished our missions convention at our church. We had 2 missionaries from Paraguay speak at our missions convention. They both did a fantastic job. One of the missionaries and his family are my good friends, Sherry and Charley Mattix. They arrived out here in California December 6th and are moving on today to their home district Southern Missouri to finish raising the funds they need to get back to Paraguay. I am going to miss them but I am excited to see what God is doing in their lives and to see them used in amazing ways.

Next week is the week before Valentine's and I will be helping out at the flower shop again. I did that last year. I will be pretty busy working in 2 places that week. But it will work out and the flower shop needs the help.

That's all for now. I will try to post again with less time in between the postings!