R.I.P. To One Amazing Lady

Hope you’ll let me get personal for just a minute.

My family lost our Aunt Rosemary Caouette late last week, at 87.

A lot of people who pass away at 87 have gone through a long illness or decline, perhaps being house-bound or otherwise mobility-impaired.

This lady wore running shoes and was still driving around, running errands and exchanging books and magazines with my mom, right up to her last day.

She lived every minute she had, knowing she was ill, but not accepting that she was. Those are two different things.

Best known for her wicked sense of humor, but there was another side that stood out for me.

She made her life’s work her husband, and his cause, the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), became hers as well.

Whether it was raising money, making sandwiches and deviled eggs, tending the bar, or checking on other military families, she was tireless. It mattered to him, so it mattered to her.

In the end, the two of them got homeless vets off the streets, into warm beds and with meals and medicine. For these men and women, they made sure our nation kept the promises it had made.

In marriage, in family, in country, Rosemary was “all-in” and we will never forget her.