Funerals and Stuff

I haven't written in here since the death of my brother. Things were a little bit hectic, but I am here now, and I will try to recall what I can to write about.

On both Wednesday and Thursday, I chose to go to work. There was no sense sitting around my house where my thoughts may overwhelm me. There was a need to go to work and try to keep this out of my mind as much as possible. Had there been something I could do or say to anybody to help out at this terrible time, I would've done so. Eileen happens to be in North Carolina and is too far for me to be able to do any of that. A lot of emails were sent around to the family members as to what would be going on for this funeral and all the arrangements. I also had to get my flight tickets, and everything else. My wife decided to come with me on this trip, and I am grateful for all of her support in this. The tickets cost me $1150 for roundtrip for two as well as our hotel room and a car with unlimited miles for Saturday through Tuesday. I didn't think this was too bad for last minute tickets, and am feeling pretty good about it.

I took Friday off from work as my regular day off from work that I do every two weeks. The day was spent in getting ready for this trip. Not too much more happened of note.

Saturday morning, we got up nice and early so we could drive to the airport. We got there nice and early like we were supposed too. Nothing much happened to us, and we got through the new puffer machines just fine (they put you in a spot while air is puffed at you to see if there is any residue from bomb making stuff). We sat at the airport for awhile and wondered where my mom, dad, sister and Natalie were. They got there on time, but it seems that when my brother reserved Natalies ticket under the family name instead of her real name. Had she been 21 (she is 20) they said she wouldn't have been able to get on the flight. Anyway, we made it just fine. There was a long layover in Cincinatti.

We met up with Keith in North Carolina. We got our rental car and took him to his hotel, and then went to our hotel. Problem is, we got lost getting to our hotel. That lasted way too long. The streets in Raleigh curve everywhere, and it isn't the easiest place to find things. After all of that, we went to Eileens house. We spent a little time there, and were told to come back at 8:00 AM for breakfast before church. We got Keith home OK, and then got lost in the dark trying to get back to our place. We finally arrived at our hotel around midnight. We didn't have the best temperments.

Sunday morning we got up, got Keith and headed to Eileens. Surprisingly, we were the first ones there. This is the first time I was able to see my brothers house and yard in the daylight. It is absolutely gorgeous. He has a slight swamp in the backyard, with Beavers who keep on building a dam that he keeps on tearing down so it doesn't flood his yard. My brother never could simply get rid of the Beavers because they are just doing what the do naturally. Breakfast was great, and we then headed for church. We only went to Sacrament meeting.

We left church and just kind of hung out at Eileens during the day. There was a lot of food there so there was eating and socializing. Some had gone to their hotels for some rest. That night, we went to the mortuary at 6:00 PM for the viewing at 7:00 PM. There was a ton of people at the viewing. An employee at the mortuary said that she had been at the mortuary for 7 years and had never seen so many people show up. The line was long. It went down the hall, outside and through the parking lot over to the grass of the cemetary. In the end, we looked at the registry book and found that over 1,000 people had come. It was a long night with a lot of good people who came to support Eileen in her loss of her husband, as well as the family. It was well appreciated, and we could see the lives that my brother Randy had touched.

Monday morning came awful early. Once again, we took the trek to Eileens house and visited for a bit there as well as had breakfast once again. I should mention here that we felt the Southern hospitality throughout our stay. There was always a lot of food and a lot of well wishers. People wanted to do things for Eileen so there was one man who directed people with what they could do. They fixed the stairs coming up to her house. They powerwashed the house. They cleaned every room in the house including moving things to clean under them. They got rid of some of the old vehicles that Randy never quite got around to doing something with. They took some things to the dump, some to good will. People were busy doing service for my brother and his wife that was very much appreciated. There were those who came over and gave comfort, peace and love. Of this, my family is most grateful.

Well, we finally got to the church. We had a prayer meeting. Eileen opened the casket and told those who wanted to go up and see my brother to come up and look. I don't like open caskets at all, so, of course I refused to go up and look. From my understanding, he was quite beat up from the accident and didn't really look much like the Randy that we had all known and loved. I didn't want to see his body in particular all broken up. This is not the way I want to remember him. I want to remember him with his livelyness (if that isn't a word it should be). The family prayer was said by Alan (his son) and then we pall bearers went into the actual funeral services. I really didn't want to speak, but I was asked too as were all of us in the family. The funeral services went for about 2 1/2 hours.

Here is my talk (well, I changed it a little, but this is what I had written down).

Memories of Randy

When I was asked to give my memories about Randy, I struggled with it. I am a bit younger than him, so I didn’t do a lot with him. But, I know who he is, and the type of person that he has turned out to be.

The first thing that I thought of about Randy is the fact that he was always a peacemaker. No matter what was going on, he would be able to diffuse the situation. He had a real talent there and a real gift. It is one that I wish I could have, but just doesn’t seem to be inside of me.

Randy also loved to paint. I remember seeing him sit for hours painting on his easel. He entered quite a few paintings into 4-H competitions. He did pretty well there. I never understood how somebody could sit there for hours taking care of the minutest details on the paintings. Randy had the patience that I so desire. Randy loved the 4-H. He was quite involved with them through the years.

Randy’s paintings showed his love of nature. He loved nature. He had a love for plants and animals. His love for animals was so great that he even fell in love and married a woman (Eileen) who had a Rabbit for a vehicle. I recall when Eileen called Randy for a date. Randy was excited. He asked if that was the really cute girl he had met, and was quite excited. He never remembered names very easily so my mother told him to remember her name by word association, that is, I lean on Eileen. Seriously though, he really does love nature. He was always stopping to look at Gods creations. He was always in awe. Always humble about life. He also collected bugs. He always seemed to have a net around that he was quite good at catching the next beautiful butterfly. Most of the time, after capturing them, he would look at them, and then release them. However, he did keep some of them to add to his collection.

I remember his lizards. Randy had chameleons. He kept them in a terrarium. Well, most of the time they were kept there. Mom didn’t much like the lizards. There were a couple of times that they got out, and we couldn’t let mom know that they were lost. Sooner or later, they were found and put back in. When Randy left on his mission, he asked me to take care of the chameleons. I really didn’t want to do it, but being that he was on the Lords errand, it was the least I could do. Randy left on his mission, and I went to feed the chameleons the next morning. Both of them were dead. I guess they too were heartbroken that this wonderful man would be gone.

Well, these are a few of my memories about Randy. From these few examples we can see a quality human being. Randy is a peacemaker, a man with patience, a man who loves everything and everybody on this earth. I don’t think he had any malice toward anybody. Even the critters knew they would miss him. Randy, if we could all be like you, this world would be the celestial kingdom. We need more people like you. May your love fill all of us here? May we all feel peace, knowing that you are in your final rest? We are going to miss you. We love you. Enjoy your new experiences.

(End of my talk - I kept it short because there were so many people to speak).

There was over 600 people at the funeral services.

Next we had a ride in the Limos to the cemetary with a police escort. Once again, a lot of people came. My dad dedicated the grave of his son, and then we hung out for a bit. We were taken back to the church. My wifes group got lost because they tried to follow my limo, and was a bit late to the church and lunch. They did arrive, and we had a wonderful lunch. The chicken burritos were hand made all the way from plucking the chicken. The vegetables were all from the same ladys garden. It was a fabulous meal.

After the lunch, Larry said that he was inviting the family that was 13 and over to go to Lake Powell on the 20th of June. He discouraged parents and wanted it to be a teen age thing. Then he said that this was with the exception of Glens family as they had already planned on going. Basically, this excluded only two people. My daughter and my sisters daughter. We were a bit hurt by that. Larry explained it later. He was really looking for something for some of the teens to do that had stress in their lives (my sisters because of her husband in the prison, and Eileens family because of this death). He told me that he has since changed it, and all are invited to come.

We left the funeral and went back to our hotel. We sat around for awhile and then decided to go to the mall. While at the mall, my brother Larry called. They were looking for something to do. We had been talking about a movie, and they said they would probably do that. They all got together at Eileens house, and we felt it was too far to drive and they wouldn't want to wait anyway. We went and picked up Keith instead, and headed out to a theatre that was near to where we were. We went to see "The Da Vinchi Code". We really enjoyed that.

Tuesday morning, we slept in a bit. We then picked up Keith and went to Eileens house. Once again, lots of food and just plain old talking with each other and reminiscing. Of course, we went to the airport and left to go to Atlanta, and after a 2 hour lay over there on to Salt Lake. We arrived home at 11:00 PM, and my mother-in-law was at our house with our kids. She will sleep on the couch, and we will be getting some sleep as well.

Here is an article on my brother from his newspaper.

NCSU prof dies in Clayton crash
Randy Rose, 52, is remembered as a popular teacher who did enzymes research

Rose taught toxicology, did research.

Mandy Locke, Staff Writer

Randy Rose died just blocks from his Clayton home Tuesday evening when a sport utility vehicle knocked his car into the path of a truck.

Rose, an N.C. State University toxicology professor and researcher, was killed instantly.

Rose, 52, left work about 5 p.m. Tuesday and headed home to Johnston County in rush-hour traffic. He slowed his 14-year-old Honda Civic to a stop on Guy Road to turn left into his subdivision, said state Highway Patrol Trooper D.L. Braswell. As Rose waited for a pickup to clear the oncoming lane, a Ford Expedition slammed into his rear, knocking him into oncoming traffic.

Braswell said he thinks Geneva Cox, 49, the driver of the Expedition, didn't notice that Rose has stopped. He estimates that she rammed Rose's car at 40 miles per hour.

Rose's car slid into the path of a Dodge pickup, which pushed his car back into the original lane. Rose then clipped a Pontiac Grand Am before his car finally stopped spinning, Braswell said.

Rose's son, one of his five children, happened upon the crash within moments, Braswell said.

Charges against Cox are pending, Braswell said.

Rose helped run the environmental and molecular toxicology research lab at NCSU's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, university officials said. He joined the staff in 1989, soon after earning his doctorate at Louisiana State University.

Rose spent much of his time researching how enzymes might aid human metabolism of chemicals such as pesticides. He was also a sought-after professor in the classroom, said Ernest Hodgson, the former head of NCSU's department of toxicology.

Students gravitated to Rose after taking his general toxicology course, Hodgson said. "They knew Randy was someone they could go to who would be interested in their problems," he said.

Rose planned to spend the summer researching.

Visitation will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Sunday at McLaurin Funeral Home in Clayton. The funeral will be at 10 a.m. Monday at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Smithfield.

Staff writer Mandy Locke can be reached at 829-8927 or mandy.locke@newsobserver.com.
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Here is the obituary:

Dr. Randy Lynn Rose, 52, May 23, 2006.

Funeral service will be held on Monday, May 29, 2006, at 10:00 a.m. at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Garner. Interment will follow at Maplewood Cemetery, Clayton.

Randy was born on April 24, 1954 in Kane, UT to Wayne and Joy Rose. At 19 years of age, Randy served a two-year mission for the Latter Day Saints Church in Sao Paulo, Brazil. He earned the rank of Eagle Scout as a youth and continued to serve more than 25 years as a scout leader. He was a baseball coach in the Clayton Little League program for 13 consecutive years.

Randy received his Bachelor and Masters degrees from Utah State University and his PhD from Louisiana State University. He began his career at North Carolina State University under a post doctorate program and in 1989 helped to found the Dept. of Toxicology with his focus research on human metabolism and toxicology. He was an accomplished, internationally renowned toxicology researcher and speaker, published many times in professional journals.

He held many positions in the church including Bishop, Branch President, High Counselor, Young Men's President and teacher. His love was working with the youth of the church.

Randy is survived by his wife, Eileen G. Rose; sons, Brian Rose, Alan Rose, Gordon Rose, Oran Rose; and daughter, Karen Rose all of Clayton; parents, Wayne and Joy Rose of Salt Lake City, Ut.; brothers, Larry Rose, Keith Rose and Scott Rose of Bountiful, Ut., Craig Rose of West Jordan, Ut. and Glen Rose of Cedar Hills, Ut.; sister, Sharon Crockett of Highland, Ut.

In lieu of flowers a fund has been established in the memory of Randy Rose c/o Eileen Rose 2315 Huntsbridge Dr. Clayton, NC 27520.

The family will receive friends and relatives on Sunday evening, May 28, 2006 from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at McLaurin Funeral Home.

Condolences may be made to the family at www.mclaurinatpinecrest.com.

Arrangements by McLaurin at Pinecrest, Funerals & Cremations, Clayton.

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The funeral cost around $11,000 and so far they have gotten donations of about $4,400.

Anyway, that's about it for now.