Mary LaVerne was a daughter, sister, mother, grandmother, friend and helpful to all. She always took care of everyone’s children, always taking field trips. She was diagnosed with Vascular Dementia at age of 61, after having many mini strokes which she had to be put in Essex Nursing Home where she thrived at first going to Catholic Mass, socializing, listening to music, playing bingo, doing arts & crafts, the red hat society ( where I tried to collect enough hats for everyone to have one to keep). She would volunteer me to bake the treats for their monthly party. She began forgetting who we were by 63 but she knew she trusted us. When Covid-19 shut down visitation at the nursing home she was also diagnosed with covid-19 test8ng positive, having to change her room which I kept decorated and fresh red roses weekly, having no visitors for 4 months ( even though I continued to drop off her snacks). I believe she died from a broken heart because she did not see me her sister, her mother, daughter & daughter in law and grandchildren. She lived for us in her younger years and it must’ve seemed as we turned our back her when she needed us most. We got 1 hour funeral, no friends, no gravesite services, no Catholic Mass. It left our family with sadness to lose a loved one at 63 yrs young. I miss our daily talks, laughing and just spending time together.

I’ll forever miss hearing I love you everyday. Words that don’t come often or with meaning now. The hugs you gave as the rain poured on my life. The smile I had seeing you here.. You will be missed…

Also submitted to NPR’s series, “Songs of Remembrance”:

I don’t believe anyone could choose his favorite song; everything he wrote was a labor of love. The final gift he gave us was “I Remember Everything,” which turned out to be maybe his most prophetic. His music inspired millions of fans worldwide and leaves his family with a lasting legacy.

The song title says it all: “I Remember Everything.” It evokes so much emotion and so many memories, they’re truly hard to separate. My best memory of John is the last conversation we had — about six weeks before we lost him. It ended the way every one of our conversations ended: “Love you, Cuz!” —Jennifer Johnson, cousin

Jared Henry, 47, was a wonderful husband/Dad/teacher and high school defensive coordinator at Coalfield High school in Coalfield TN. He transferred to UK Medical on Dec 16th for ECMO to save his life from Covid. The excellent doctors & nurses did all they could and he died Jan 13th. Thank you to all of them for their tireless efforts every single day.
They never gave up and I am forever grateful! He is deeply missed by me, his wife and his two children along with so many players, teachers and friends that his presence meant so much daily. He was an avid bass fisherman and loved the Lord with all his heart. Please say prayers for us as this has been a very hard journey for everyone. We love you Jared!

Northeast Tony
Tony worked out at the same Y as me – the Northeast Y in Louisville. He was older than just about everybody who worked out there but the man could pump more iron than guys half his age. I admired his discipline and grit. He never slacked or gave up in the middle of a set. Sometimes, on those days when I wasn’t feeling it, I would walk by him and shake my head and he would smile and nod “yes”. We never talked much because that’s not what we went there for. This went on for years. I didn’t even know his last name. When I talked about him to friends, I just called him Northeast Tony. Finally, one day, I suggested going out for a beer. We did and I found out we had a lot in common besides weightlifting. He had lived in France for a while and spoke French like me. And like me, he loved to read history. And finally, after years of saying “Hi” and small talking I finally asked him his last name. And from then on Northeast Tony became Tony Forman. I really miss his nods of encouragement. He was an inspiration to me. I’m glad I told him that.