| Rector’s
Homily and Remembrance by Melly's sister
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| Homily by Ned Prevost: Today Melly has been surrounded by the Church. She has been surrounded by the Church’s priests, all of whom have been privileged to serve with Melly in the Church’s ministry. She is surrounded by the Church’s children, either those in the congregation or those in the choir, but certainly representative of the children who knew first hand what Melly’s ministry was all about. She is surrounded by her family, Joe, Chris, Wendy and Dean, Rachel and Abby, Doug and Matt, and other family as well as many friends, all of whom Melly would have welcomed and included as part of this larger family we call the Church. But Melly also deeply understood how truly expansive and timeless the Church that surrounds her is. It’s that company referenced in Revelation who “are before the throne of God, and worship God day and night within his temple, and the one who is seated on the throne will shelter them. They will hunger no more, thirst no more; …for the lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd,….” These are the saints and the martyrs, they are Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca, and Rachel(this would be the first Rachel, Rachel), Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Mary Magdalene, Mary the Mother of Jesus, they’re all here in a way that only God could arrange because Church has been described as the thin place between heaven and earth. And can’t you just see Melly’s response to their company. “Oh hi! I’m Melly Turner, and I’ve heard of you!” We’ve also surrounded Melly with the Church’s faith, with the Church’s witness, and with the Church’s music. Melly gave us many gifts not only in her living but in her dying and the directions for this service were among them. There was a slight debate whether or not Joe would join Melly and me in working out these details, but Melly finally allowed as how much she did want Joe in on that consultation just as long as he remembered that this was her party. The Church’s music and this church’s music were very dear to Melly and she was a huge fan of the choir, joining it as a chorister on those few occasions when she could, and a huge fan of those like the Clevengers who offer their gifts so freely. You might have noticed or will notice a slight evangelical flavor which was and is deliberate. Joe (Melly?) wasn’t always an Episcopalian but we couldn’t get George Beverley Shea here in person, actually I think he is with Melly right now, and so the horn ensemble’s rendition of “Just as I am” will have to do. All of that is quite a surrounding. All of that tradition, genealogy, and connection have wrapped their arms around Melly and assured us of her safe keeping. Such is the nature of this “thin place” that Melly truly embraced in her life and in her ministry. It is a wonderful combination of knowing that heaven is our destination and that our earthly lives can be truly in touch with and redeemed by those spiritual realities and opportunities. The thin places don’t deny our humanity, they lift them up. That thin place was all the more attractive because of Melly’s gifts of honesty and hope and humor. Melly was always Melly! Even now she is still Melly! I was at the Cathedral in Chicago two weeks ago today when almost exactly to this minute during the Prayers of the People Melly came to my mind and my soul and I was blessed to hold her there for a few minutes. Ten minutes later the vibrator on my cell phone went off (Melly couldn’t stand cell phone rings in church) and I just knew it was Joe calling me to say Melly had died. And that’s what it was. I had to laugh, however, on reflecting that when Melly came to my mind it was as if she were telling me in that loving but bossy way only Melly could pull off,"Ned, pay attention because I’ve just asked Joe to call you.” Honesty, hope, and humor. These were just some of the ways Melly lived in that thin place and also helped us to make her dying and death just a little easier. On Melly’s last Sunday with us we announced that we were making a contribution to the national association of the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and that we were dedicating our Good Shepherd Atrium to Melly with a plaque that is to read “this Good Shepherd Atrium is dedicated to Melly Turner in thanksgiving for her loving service as Director of Children’s Ministries 1996 – 2007” Melly loved the Good Shepherd and knew that the Good Shepherd loved her. Our other atrium downstairs is that of the True Vine, thus John’s Gospel for today. Melly knew that she was connected to the vine which is Christ and she lived that way and she died that way. Yet more than that she taught us that truth and she loved us into that truth. We have, all of us, been blessed by God through her because she knew how blessed she was by God in the name of God the Creator, in the name of Jesus the Good Shepherd and the Vine, and in the name of the Holy Spirit, our sacred paint and paste. Amen
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Remembrance by Melly's sister, Wendy: Melly Good Morning. I’m Melly’s sister, Wendy, and on behalf of our family I thank you for being with us today. It is a great comfort to be in the company of so many who value Melly’s life as we do. We gather here for several reasons - to give thanks for having Melly in our lives, to pay respect to the legacies she left, to pray for her as she moves to a new place, but ultimately we are here because of a dreaded disease known as cancer. My sister, however, and I know that this won’t surprise any of you in this congregation, after the initial shock and anger and wishing it weren’t so as one does when given the diagnosis of a terminal illness, handled her future with the utmost grace and courage and good humor. I don’t know how she did it. But she did it. I think by sheer force of her spirit, supported by the love and prayers from this congregation, her friends and her family we were able to have Melly with us for a little over 3 years. During that time, in spite of numerous surgeries and bouts with chemotherapy, she managed to nurture her family, attend to her career obligations, and volunteer in an after-school tutoring program. She traveled abroad and kept company with the friends and family who meant so much to her. And with the help of her friend, Mary-Anne, finished the quilts that were so important to leave for her daughters, Rachel and Abigail. If there is any good that comes from a cancer diagnosis it is the opportunity to make the most of whatever time remains. During these past three years she and our families made the most of that time - as did you. Melly found her home both spiritually and collegially here at Christ Church. She loved this parish and all that it encompassed – the clergy and its families; her co-workers; her students; their teachers; the music and scripture at services; the friendship with fellow parishioners, and the events and celebrations such as the Bishop’s Ball, the bizarre Bazaar, and her special pride – The children’s Christmas Pageant. And when the end came closer and her energy waned and she worried about not holding up her end of the contract as she had held it in the past, you stood by her with patience, prayer, and understanding. You honored her with a retirement party and Mothers’ Day luncheon and recognized her contributions with a special plaque. Today you have rallied again, providing food and flowers and shelter to sustain her family in our time of grief. Our gratitude is unbounded And now Melly is gone. The time has come to face the void, a void for me that is the color of darkness. I have lost my sister, my cohort, my playmate and confidant. As I try to come to terms with never being with her again on this earth, I will try to focus on the love she gave and the love she has left behind. Because I hope that the light from that love, little by little will eclipse the darkness, allowing the beauty of the life she led to shine through. And I hope that beauty will shine for all of you as well, easing the pain of our loss and rekindling the joy we shared when she was among us as we go through the days, months and years to come. Thank you |
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