Remembrance by Ralph Stone, son-in-law

In June 2003 we had a family reunion in a state park in Ohio, and in a conversation near the end of our time together, my brother-in-law Tim referred to Mother as “the matriarch”. What really startled me was Tim’s referring to her in such an impersonal way. This was a household and family where the established order went against even referring to Mother in the third person as “she”!

Yet, as quickly as that thought raced across my mind, it became obvious; Mother, in fact, led our family. She quietly led as the sort of servant-leader that the apostle Paul refers to, “Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” Paul continues on in that passage from Philippians, explaining that this was how Jesus Christ led, taking upon himself the form of a servant.

That was how Mother led. Probably all of us here will think of many times in our experiences with her in which she put your interests first, making you the center of the conversation, and the center of her interest.

Mother knew the Lord Jesus Christ and lived in faith in him. And she led in the manner of Jesus Christ, counting us all as more significant than herself. So, now we each in this day will continue to serve her Lord and ours, but we miss that strong, quiet presence, the beautifully feminine smile and laugh….. We miss Mother,…. Elisabeth,…… faithful servant of Jesus Christ.