Tuesday, August 15, 2023
Read at Ginny Lou's Funeral (from Greg Shapiro):
Friend, aunt, sister, confidant, artist, employee, employer— all roles Ginny embraced to the fullest. If you found yourself in one of life’s bottomless pits, Ginny was your greatest gift; she would offer a steady hand to pull you from the abyss.
Ginny was an absolute rock of a person. In fact, I recently visited the Rock of Gibraltar, where Ginny immediately came to mind. History tells us that the Rock of Gibraltar has never been moved, swayed, or conquered. History tells us the same of Ginny Lou. And, for as intimidating as “The Rock” was, we were surprised to see that, inside of that mountain, were caves converted into hospitals and resting spots for the war-weary. Again, that was like Ginny Lou - an imperial bulwark, but inside, space for beauty, shelter and care.
No nonsense, no ego, no fear—Ginny didn’t tell us what we wanted to hear; she told us what we needed to hear. Because of this, we always listened to Ginny.
Ginny worked as an usher at the Miller Theater, where the older rabble-rousing teenagers frequented. We all remembered her as that beautiful, blonde 19-yr old girl … whom we were completely terrified of. A force of nature that could stop most anyone in their tracks, and for good reason.
She was one of those unique humans who instinctively knew how to use command the day. She was impressive and completely warranted sense of self-assuredness. There was nothing she couldn’t handle. No person she couldn’t take on. No relationship she couldn’t build upon.
We all will miss Ginny for her love, understanding, and knowing that a beautiful interior was inside. Ginny was kind, loving, and just a wonderful person. As we all know, friendship with Ginny was long-lasting, loyal, and dependable, far more than goes beyond the usual human capacity.
She is now with Ed, Helma, Matthew, and her adopted family, Earl, and Leon. We all will miss Ginny for her loyalty, kindness, sincerity, brilliance, and, most of all, her love for us all.
In this week we all have repeated all the stories of Ginny Lou, her love of dogs, saw blade art, her old TR 3, her jewelry, and hanging up on my father when he ran out of gas, told him to walk. I think that Ginny Lou message to us that she loved us all and continue to keep in touch with each other. That what she wants.
