And, Wolfie .. I, too, am so heartbroken to learn she was alone .. please, Lord, it was in an instant, no fear.
Westminster Choir ~~ On Eagle's Wings
Posted on 07/31/2007 4:57:53 PM PDT by DollyCali
I just received an Email from her son Mark.
I am Gretchen Erickson's son Mark, and I wanted to let everyone know who loved and appreciated my mother as much as I did that she is no longer with us. One comfort that I do have is the realization that she is no longer in any pain and is with God now. I still hear her resounding infectious laugh ringing in my ears as a constant reminder that she is having a wonderful time in Heaven. As I write this and I look at how many people she had in her contact list it show me that even with her limited physical abilities that she still made such a positive impact on the lives of so many different people throughout the vast expanse of our planet.
I wish I would have had the opportunity to communicate with all of my Mother's friends under circumstances that didn't bring such disparaging news.
At the same time,this turn of events might provide for a chance to hear from those people my Mother provided spiritual guidance, emotional support and general companionship to if the desire exists within those who knew her. From my personal standpoint, I would be greatly honored to hear any stories of how my Mother has inspired or helped anyone of you throughout the journey of your life.
As most of you who knew my Mother were aware, she has been struggling with emotional and physical problems for a very long time. She was feeling very weak and very sick over the last few days. Mike went to check on her the night before last, her body was rejecting the food she had tried to eat but she still appeared stable.
The next morning he went to check on her again and she wasn't in her bed. He then realized how quiet the house was and found her in the bathroom sitting on the floor. He tried CPR but to no avail, to much time had passed as she expired some time that night.
(CLIP ON PERSONAL CONTACT INFO)
My Mother has a very strong spirit that will carry on with those people she had the chance to cross a proverbial path with. I have never met another person that despite their circumstances never focused on how bad things were, but instead always looked for what was yet to come.
I love my Mother more than I can describe in words. She is the greatest woman I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. I owe my livelihood, my table manners, my fervor and passion for knowledge, my love for God, and my wit, among many other attributes that would overload the internet if I were to list them all, to her and her alone.
She will live in my memory and my heart until I am once again rejoined with her in Heaven.
Beloved son of Gretchen
Mark
And, Wolfie .. I, too, am so heartbroken to learn she was alone .. please, Lord, it was in an instant, no fear.
Amen, Dolly!
Oh no.... I am so saddened to hear this. You are with God now, dear Gretchen.
Prayers for Gretchen and her family.
This has to be a shock to them even though they may have noticed some symptoms as Mark mentions. May the Lord comfort all of them with His blessed consolation. Amen
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May The Lord bless you and keep you; May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. |
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Catholic Prayer Ping Please address all prayers to DollyCali; If you would like to be added to the Catholic Prayer Ping List, please FReepmail me.
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This is such stunning news, I can hardly believe it. Prayers for Gretchen M and her family. May God comfort them through this time of mourning over their loss of a fine and decent woman as Gretchen.
Dear Mark, Your mother was a member of our Puget Sound Chapter of FRee Republic. She was very active in others groups here as well. We will all miss her. One funny story I will relay to you, was the changing of her screen name here on FR from GretchenEE to GretchenM. Apparently she’d had enough of the ribbing about her “size.” It was funny and endearing. I am certain she is proud of her loving and well brought up son. May God comfort you, Libertina PS Chapter Leader
Big time prayers, for all her family. May God hold her close in Heaven.
Prayers sent.
Must have been a fellow christian, will say HI to her on the other side. Knuckle wayne.
I never had the pleasure of meeting GretchenM but I am sure her prayers for my recovery were heard by God. I send a grateful thanks to Almighty God for a woman so loving who would drop everything to pray for others and bear her own suffering silently.
Mark, if you read this, please know my heart aches for the grief you are having to bear right now. May you feel the gently and loving arms of the Lord about you and may you know the peace that your mother is experiencing now in His loving embrace.
With heartfelt sympathy,
LibreOuMort.
Prayers sent for the whole family.
Our prayers go out to you at this difficult time.
Prayers for Mark as he grieves the lost of a great Mom.
I hope God has a area in heaven for all us from FR who have been family to each other.
I know there are some souls I want to see again from here.
Rest in peace
Gretchen,
Keep watch over us from your new seat in heaven. I’ve prayed for you.
My condolences to you, Mark, and my empathy to all who are grieving, and who knew Gretchen so much better than I - even if it was just through one word - “Dose”.
After reading so many of the posts here, I wanted to leave the words of the Apostle Paul in his first letter to the Thessalonians. May it bring peace and hope to all who read it.
Christian
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.
We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.
According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
Therefore encourage each other with these words.
I can’t believe Gretchen’s sudden passing. My prayers are also with her and her family. May she rest peacefully in the Lord’s arms
I am so sorry to read this. I got to know her through the Carrie thread. I hope somhow FR can get an update now and then on how Carrie is doing. The world’s loss is heaven’s gain.
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