EULOGY: VERONICA (RONNIE) WARD – FAITHFUL DISCIPLE
This eulogy was delivered by Ronnie’s nephew Adam. What a tribute to Ronnie and her deceased husband, Jim. For years Ronnie has been a regular participant at St. Michael’s weekday Noon Mass, a daily reminder to all of us of the many St. Michael disciples who have been and still are committed to Christ and His Church.
EULOGY
Thank you, Monsignor for all your pastoral care over the years. She held you and the priesthood in the highest regard.
To her friends who took the time to attend this Mass: I know your presence would have touched Vera.
She was the veritable Mayor of Cranford Towers
What words could be spoken to us, her family members, that could add context or color to what she meant to any of us? What words could describe her justly? It all seems so wanting.
A LIFETIME SPENT WITNESSING TO THE LORD
To her family members, she was a constant in our lives. Be it joy or sorrow Aunt Vera or Aunt Ronnie was there to make the good times better and the challenging times a bit more bearable.
She was a devoted daughter, a devoted sister, a devoted aunt, a devoted wife, and a devoted daughter of Mother Church.
She truly was a Witness of Christ.
And that, I think, is how we should honorably remember Aunt Vera – as a Witness to Christ. Her actions alone would leave no doubt that she followed the Lord.
Her charitable acts were legion. Her defenses of the unborn and the infirmed were unwavering.
Who among us did not speak to Aunt Vera, asking her to keep whatever intentions or concerns we had in her prayers, and not think we had an Ace in the hole on how things would work out?
True to form, if the answers to these prayers were delayed in being answered, she would attempt to right the matter by her own hand, if need be – perhaps, with a few phone calls.
Who among us spent any time with her and not think that you were the most important person in the world? It did not matter who you were, nor your status. It could be the homeless and, at times, it was, the lonely and, at times, it was, the outsider, and it was. She radiated God’s goodness and love, and everyone felt it.
I think her husband Jim said best how we feel today:
When I was in High School and Uncle Jim and I were having dinner at the Coach and Four, we were talking about Aunt Vera. A lull in the conversation took place. Then Jim put his elbows on the table, leaned toward me and said with all sincerity, “If Ronnie doesn’t get to heaven, we are (bleep) sc—-ed!”
What a love story they were for us to witness! Vera said once, “I don’t miss Jim; I long for him.” To consider the celestial reunion between them has to provide us solace in our sadness.
To quote a line from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, “She was a woman, take her for all in all, we shall not look upon her like again.” Hamlet Act 1, Scene 2
LEFT TO US AS HER RELATIVES AND FRIENDS:
However, our feelings and high opinion of Aunt Vera must not allow any of us to neglect our duty as Catholics. We are to do this because A.V. truly wants and deserves this from us. For she prayed incessantly for all of us and for those souls who have passed.
As we did today at the Mass, when the priest raised the Blessed Host to Heaven, we should all be committed, from this day forward, to pray for her soul as, if it hangs in the balance, beg Our Lord to embrace her in his arms and whisper “Well done good and faithful servant.“
+++++
Concerning Ronnie’s interest in every person having opportunities to grow in the faith, I present two stories:
Several years ago, Ronnie called me and asked me to meet with the grandson of a neighbor, a boy preparing to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation. I agreed, being grateful for the opportunity and for Ronnie’s concern for the young man and wanting him to have some extra guidance in growing to know Christ. And fulfilling the request, enabled me to build a friendship with the young man and with his mother and grandmother, too!
And on another day, Ronnie called to engage my help in providing a gift to the pregnant young women at Raphael’s Life House, Elizabeth, so that they could rejoice, as Mary did, in the new life they carried within them. My part was the take her to a Target store in Linden that had frames of just the right size for the Blessed Mother images that she asked parishioner Bill Griffin to print.
What a wonderful world it would be if each of us were a bit more like Ronnie, caring for the needy around us!
Sister Loretta