A Celebration of Beverly's Life

I wish all of you could have been there for Beverly's memorial service Saturday.  In a way, you all were.  Beverly's pastor, Scott, must have spent the entire week between her death and her funeral reading her blog.  He said that in many ways she'd written her own eulogy with the scriptures she selected each week for her "Saints and Scripture Sundays" posts.  He read comments from readers he'd found on her blog as well as emails readers from around the country had sent to him.

Edie's good friend Scotty made this beautiful arrangement for the altar.  I wish my photography skills were better so that you could see that the arrangement includes not only lilies and roses, but kale, one of Beverly's favorite vegetables to cook with :) And yes, her urn is a covered casserole dish - what could be more appropriate for a food blogger?

These were the pictures we had on display of Bev from childhood through adulthood.  The one in the center is her senior portrait and the black and white ones are from when she was crowned Prom Queen.

 Here's the altar with everything in place, including her picture from the blog, her leather vest from the Harley-Davidson 'Bike Week" in Daytona, and a sign that hung on her front door reading "How can I miss you if you won't go away?"  The church was decorated beautifully for Christmas, and the pews were full of people who loved her.

 Scott had the brilliant idea of creating his own version of "prayer cards" for Beverly.  The backs didn't have prayers on them, though - they had recipes.  There were four different recipes, and once people realized that not everyone had the same recipe there was a bit of a scuffle as women made sure they had one of each.  The recipes included were for Hot Mess Brownies, Hoppin' John Savannah Style, Hot Brown Panini, and Turnip and Potato Soup. David Biddle was mentioned specifically in the Turnip and Potato Soup recipe, and he played and sang two lovely hymns for us with his autoharp, speaking briefly about Beverly in between.  It was heartfelt and beautiful.

After the service it was standing room only downstairs where the ladies of the church had put together a spread of food unlike anything you'll ever experience outside a funeral at a small Southern church.  At the far end of the table you'll see Scoot, the pastor, and his wife.  If you're looking for a church filled with loving people and led by a practical, charming, and devout pastor (and you live somewhere within driving distance of the Fayette/Bourbon County line in Kentucky) check out Old Union Christian Church at 11 a.m. on any Sunday.  I guarantee your soul will be nourished.  It's at 6856 Russell Cave Rd, and you can call (859) 293-6192 if you need directions ;)  Mention you came because of Beverly's blog and you're sure to get some good "Beverly stories" - there are plenty to go around.  I'll be sharing more over on my own blog, The Jammie Girl.  Angie