Resting Place

On Wednesday morning after the funeral my little family headed over to the cemetery to see my Moms resting place. We got there right after the sun had come up and there was such a feeling of peace and serenity.

It is beautiful there...

The perfect spot for a genealogist.

Funeral

The funeral was beautiful - the flowers, family, friends, and peaceful feeling that permeated the service. A very special thanks to the Placentia Second Ward for making everything so nice and having it run so smoothly for our family. We printed 225 programs and there was not enough, we apologize but you can view the program here (just click on the picture to see it larger).

All is well

There is so much I want and need to write and yet there is no time to sit and get the words out. Planning a funeral is a lot of work to coordinate and its nice spending time with loved ones. Before too much time passed I did want to share a few thoughts that might answer how our family is doing right now. Ive been hesitant to express some of it because I don't want anyone to try to correlate how we are doing as a reflection of how much we loved our Mom. Our friend Amelia whose Dad also had ALS shared this with us.

I remember feeling frustrated when people called my dad's passing a loss, it truly was not a loss, if anything it was a great gain of testimony & knowledge of what the purpose of life is & a confirmation that the gospel is true!

That sums up a lot how I feel. Of course I am sad that we have lost my Mom! Of course if I could choose I would bring her back in heartbeat. But I cant choose to bring her back and it has happened and since I cant change it I can choose to be grateful for everything I have learned. I can not even begin to express how much my life has changed in these last 6 months. I am a different person - a better person.

The day after my Mom died I was having a really bad day. I didn't want to eventually be okay. You can read more about my feelings here if you want but it can be summed up by saying I was really angry for a few moments that I had to get use to a new life without my Mom. I took a wrong turn on accident and ended up passing the Rose Hill Friends Church and their sign read:

Change is inevitable - Growth is intentional.

I smiled to myself - here was my very first message from my Mom :) It seemed so appropriate because that is exactly what my Mom would have said. Buck up girl. Get on with things. Learn what you can from it and make your life better but stop feeling sorry for yourself because you cant change it.

I know that things are going to get hard after the funeral as the shock wears off but I also know that I will always be grateful for having had the chance to realize now just how special my Mom was. I discovered a lot of myself in her during these months and serving her and being with her has left me with an inner satisfaction that can not be found anywhere else. I have no regrets.

We sang Come Come Ye Saints in church today and part of the last verse sums it all up:

And if we die before our journeys through, Happy Day! All is well!

We know my Mom is in a better place and is happy, for her it is a happy Day. I found this picture and laughed because I know this is what it looks like in Heaven right now....

My Mom sitting around cracking jokes and catching up with my
Grandpa Lew and Grandma Irene.

All is well! All is well!

A few answers

Many people have asked what mortuary and cemetery my Mom will be laid to rest at:
Loma Vista Mortuary
701 E. Bastanchury Rd.
Fullerton, California 92835

I have also had requests if there is a charity that my Mom requested in lieu of flowers. She did not express any particular request and we ask that you follow your heart in that regard.

Caroline Rober's Obituary

Caroline Melissa Braxton Rober, 58, of Brea, California peacefully passed away on Tuesday, February 1st in her home surrounded by her family. Caroline was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in September and after courageously facing her diagnosis spent the remainder of her life lifting, loving, teaching, and cheering those around her.

Caroline was born on April 23, 1952 in San Bernardino, California to Robert Charles Braxton and Gloria Lou Tabor. She joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at the age of 17 and remained dedicated to her faith throughout her entire life. She married Larry Lee Rober on August 30, 1975 in Santa Monica, California. They spent 35 happy years living in Southern California and were sealed for time and all eternity in the Los Angeles Temple on November 12, 1990.

Caroline was a dedicated stay at home Mother for their three children. When she sent her last son off to college she fulfilled her dreams of becoming a full time professional genealogist. She started as a volunteer at the Orange County Family History Center and went on to become the Technical Services Director and later Staff Trainer for the Center. She served as President of the Southern California Association of Professional Genealogists and was a favorite lecturer for Genealogical Societies all over the region. She helped coordinate the first booth at the Orange County Fair for the APG and was deeply involved in the fair for 5 years.

Her greatest joy and pleasure was being Grandma Silly to her 7 grandchildren. She loved to do genealogy research, read, walk, organize, visit her family, help those in need, and everything Christmas. She lived her life with passion, dedication, hard work, and above all selflessness and unconditional love.

She is survived by her devoted husband, Larry; son Brian Rober of San Luis Obispo; son Mark Rober of Valencia; daughter Lisa Henderson of St. George Utah ; 7 grandchildren; her father Bob Braxton of Palm Desert; and sister Pam Daut of Indio. She was preceded in death by her mother Gloria Braxton.

Her faith, pure heart, and indomitable spirit will be sorely missed.

Funeral

Thank you all for your messages of love today. Mark stayed up all night making that beautiful tribute to our Mom and I'm glad to hear how touching you have all found it. I find myself watching it over and over again. Thank you Mark.

The funeral services for our sweet Caroline will be this Tuesday, February 8th at the Livingston Stake Center - 210 Livingston Ave, Placentia, CA. There will be a viewing beginning at 10:00 am and the funeral service will begin at 11:00. We invite you all to the graveside service following the funeral and then a luncheon back at the Livingston Stake Center.

Gone home....

Our sweet Caroline peacefully departed from this world last night, February 1st at 10:56 pm. She was surrounded by her loving caregiver and husband, Larry; all three of her children- Brian, Lisa, and Mark; Mark's wife Lisa; her sister Pam and her niece Kelly. We will have more information regarding funeral arrangements later today. In the following week I will share more of the experience of her peaceful passing.

A few weeks ago we found an audio recording of her tender voice so we set it to music and some of our favorite memories of her below: