Wallace Kirby

Sometimes people enter your life unexpectantly.  This is how we came to know Wally Kirby.  His brother in law, Malcolm, is my step-father.  When Malcolm passed away, in January 2013,  Elder Bushman and I made a trip up to Seattle to take some of his belongings to his sisters.  We had been corresponding with Malcolm's family for about 20 years...now we were going to meet his other sister Gloria.  We went to Wally & Gloria Kirby's beautiful home.  We were introduced to an ailing Wally.  We were so impressed with the love Gloria has for her husband Wally.  He passed away on the 12th of May 2014.  So I am inclined to include his obituary on my blog this week.

  Wallace (Wally) Kirby

1929 - 2014 | Obituary |  Condolences

Wallace (Wally) Kirby

January 15, 1929 ~May 12, 2014

Wally was born in Bellingham, WA to Raymond and Gladys Kirby. He was very proud of being a Marine. He was one of the "Chosen Ones" that fought in N. Korea Dec. 1950 in the Chosin Reservoir.

After his days as a Marine he met and married Gloria Brown and they spent 60 yrs. together in Seattle, raising their four sons.

He worked most of his working years at W. Seattle Auto Parts. He was a devoted Dad, loved his home, yard, kitty cats, camping, chopping wood and sitting around the fire pit.

Wally is survived by his wife Gloria; sons Ron, Kevin (Chris) and Brian; two grandchildren and three great- grandsons.

He is preceded in death by his son Dean, parents, brother, Norris and sister,Virginia Loring.

A graveside service will be held on Tuesday, May 27, 2014 at 12:30 p.m. at Tahoma National Cemetery 18600 SE 240th St. Kent, WA 98042.

Please visit our online Memorial at www.forest lawn-seattle.com.

Published in The Seattle Times on May 18, 2014

- See more at: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/seattletimes/obituary.aspx?n=wallace-kirby-wally&pid=171063958&fhid=10964#sthash.cLu4rj20.dpuf

I saw on facebook that my oldest son was in Seattle working this week.  As he was sending pictures of being up in the needle etc. my mind wandered to how Wally had enjoyed these same tourist spots, loved his own sons and had raised them in the Seattle area.  I pondered these cousins that my son missed meeting.  I know that Wally and Gloria had a good marriage and some wonderful times with those boys they raised.  Gloria & Dorothy & Bob (Malcolm's siblings) you can be proud of your children's heritage.

I have been on Family Search trying to extend Malcolm's Genealogy and this week I learned that his own father had a step father named William Lovell.  I found this in the 1900 census records.  William's wife was Smalley Viola Lovell.  I think Malcolm told me his grandmother was named Viola Samatha Matheny & his grandfather was Thomas Brown. (I can't find records for them anywhere)  So if any of the Brown family can correct this for me I would appreciate an e-mail.  I need to know who Frank Hosha Brown's parents were....I know there is a story of sadness there...I can feel it in my own heart that Malcolm wants me to link this puzzle.  

I gave up working much on my own family history, but do a lot of indexing so people can solve problems like the above puzzle.  If you have not gone to family tree and used the cousin search, I suggest you do so.  It is just fun to discover all your cousins from way back when!

Elder Bushman had a 24 hour flu bug...so I went to the temple alone yesterday the 21st of May.  I still have a black and blue chest and sore collar bone from my fall last week...that is showing signs of pink skin finally.  Anyway, when I went to the temple yesterday the grounds crew had dug up all the pretty grass around the temple and made a muddy mess...it kind of went with my mood this week.  So this should be the the "Bla g" this week...ha.  

 I tried to catch a photo of Elder Bushman feeling better today, the 22nd, standing by the sick grass of the temple...all around the entrance to the temple the ground crew cut out big chunks of grass.  There are beautiful lilac bushes to the side of this picture and lovely flowers along the inside of the walkway...too bad you only see mud and patchwork grass.  The grass that is left is a beautiful green...too sad the rest looks so terrible.

We also decided to walk in the Sacred Grove this week.  The sun was shinning and it looks beautiful in this photo, right?  Not so, there were puddles of water and mud all around with mosquitos that found us both quite tasty and there were spider webs that we kept walking through...ha...There was a helicopter hovering around this week with big cameras on it.  We heard the Church is making another First Vision film...we can't wait to see which version of the First Vision they use.  I wonder if it will show Joseph slapping mosquitos as he prays....just wondering.

We understand the producer of this video is a Navajo Indian and that he is an awesome Lamanite....too fun that he is in charge of such an awesome project for The Lord.  Hurrah for Israel!

I finished "Walking on Water" today.  Alan Christoffersen ends his final walk across the nation to the Keys in Florida....He began in Seattle....(Ironic I know) where he was broken hearted at the death of his wife McKale...This is a series of 5 books...an awesome read...and proof that we can survive heartache and sorrow...and that we will not be immune to it in our lifetimes.  Those of you who know about my sea shell collection...will enjoy the shell story in this book more than I did...sob!

s as he comes to the end of his cross-country walk to Key West.

I hope some of you read about my experience, in the temple, with the sister with a walker that has MS.  Well, she comes faithfully each week and I got to visit with her for a moment last Friday night.  I was so touched to learn her name is Sister Sweet!  Some experiences in this life just get sweeter.

We drove down to the Peter Whitmer Farm today, May 23, 2014.  This is where the Church was organized in 1830, where Joseph finished translating the golden plates and where The Witnesses of The Book of Mormon saw the plates including Mary Whitmer.  This is where Joseph was ordained to the Priesthood.  This is a excerpt of the dedicatory prayer given on Easter Sunday in 1980, "May thy Holy Spirit abide here. May thy protecting power be made manifest in the preservation of these important scenes of history. May knowledge of thee increase and testimony of thy divine Son strengthen in the hearts of the many who will come with interest and depart with added faith and knowledge".

 They now have a beautiful visitors center next to the log cabin where the Whitmer's welcomed Joseph and his family to stay with them and all these marvelous blessings happened.  As you can see from the "Dome of the Rock" located on the top of the visitors center, the Gold Plates now rest on the top of the widows walk after Moroni melted them down and returned them to this sacred area where the translation was finished.  Now Moroni stands on top of all our temples in gold leafing to commemorate this sacred farm....Just making this up as I write....making sure you are reading this Bushman Bla..g.  It is a nice theory.  Under the dome is a Ward Chapel that would make Joseph proud.  It is used every week for meetings in this area of Fayette N. Y.  I believe I just discovered the "pot of gold" at the end of the rainbow!   Hurrah for Israel!

 Many people drive past this visitors center and think it is a Muslim Islamic Temple because of the gold dome....perhaps this is the dome that The Savior Jesus Christ will return to and that is why Moroni is the lightning bolt to all our temples...what do you think of this beautiful "golden dome" in the middle of a Fayette N Y farming community?

Just below the Whitmer farm and on the shore of the Seneca finger Lake is a girls camp that the Church owns.  We were mesmerized at its beauty.  Below is the Palmyra Pod where the girls stay.

 The Pod below is The Fayette Pod.  Why they are called Pods?  I have no idea.

Below is the Shoreline the girls can use to go swimming and boating in Seneca Lake.  It is about an 80 acre, beautiful, camp.  I'm sure The Young Women love camping here. Three Harrah's for Israel.

So Art talked me into more travels on Saturday.  We went to Ace Hardware Store in Williamson NY...I saw a awesome wall fireplace that I would love to put in the Coffee Creek Home in Edmond OK...Then we drove to Lake Ontario again.  We introduced ourselves to this couple by the lakeshore. 
He told us all about Doug's fish fry at lake Skaneateles.  After he raved about it for 10 minutes, Elder Bushman asked if he is Doug...He said, "Yes".  Don't you think he looks like he just stepped off a skipper?  He is a fisherman.  I am a fisher of men & women...I hope we both get a good catch!  So our next travels will be to Doug's...on our way home from the Cortland Ward some sunny day!

 Next we went to see the Bluffcliffs on Lake Ontario.  We did not hike to see them, but sat by the Lakeside at Lake Ontario and enjoyed watching the birds dive for fish.  It was a beautiful lazy afternoon on this Memorial Day weekend.

Elder Bushman and I talked in the Courtland Ward yesterday....whew...that's done.  Then we got up this morning and drove to Harmony Pennsylvania where The Priesthood was restored.

 Susquehanna River

We then drove back to Cortland where the Hutchington's had a very nice Ward Memorial Day Barbecue.

Then I talked Elder Bushman to go to Doug's since I found one in Courtland:

 Doesn't this look just like him!  Do you think we can convert him?

We had our home evening with all the missionaries this evening and our lesson was on all the moves the Smith family had before they settled in Palmyra.  The young single adults from this area provided a dinner for all the temple missionaries...I snacked, Elder Bushman did not eat anything as he was full from the afternoon Barbecue.

I have often wondered if my Father, David Wade, knew he was going to die young at 41.  When my sister and I were little he bought us a birthstone ring and wished it on our fingers.  He then made each of us do the "pinky swear" with him.  He swore that no matter how far away from us he was, he would always love us and that we could be assured through this promise.  I hadn't thought of that for years, but remembering Wally and Malcolm in this blog brought back this awesome memory.  I Pinky Promise you that Our Heavenly Parents loves each of you, just like my Daddy David loves me!   Do your own children know that you love them?   I pinky swear to you that it is time to make sure they know.    

It has been a full week and a wonderful Memorial Day.  I am thankful for my Uncle Gene who died during World War II.  His war bonds paid for my birth and I am his namesake.  I'm grateful for Wally Kirby and all the other people in my life that have sacrificed for the freedoms we enjoy in this country.  This has been a long week for me, but I am thankful for all I have learned.

God Bless America