THE HYSTERICAL OBITUARY THAT MADE STRANGERS MISS A MAN THEY NEVER KNEW
When Jean Lahm sat down to write her father’s obituary, the words
that poured onto the page reflected the wit and honest humor she says she inherited from him.
"Terry Wayne Ward, age 71, of DeMotte, IN, escaped this mortal realm on Tuesday, January 23rd, 2018, leaving behind 32 jars of Miracle Whip, 17 boxes of Hamburger Helper and multitudes of other random items that would prove helpful in the event of a zombie apocalypse,” she wrote.
Lahm then dived into just about every detail that made her father so distinctly lovable — details others might consider minute or maybe even out of place for an obituary.
These official remembrances tend to be serious, elegant encapsulations of a person’s life.
The one Lahm wrote about her father told his story and made people laugh a little, too. “He
met the love of his life, Kathy, by telling her he was a lineman — he didn’t specify early on that he was a lineman for the phone company, not the NFL,” Lahm wrote.
“Still, Kathy and Terry wed in the fall of 1969, perfectly between the Summer of Love and the Winter of Regret.”
And then: “He was a renowned distributor of popsicles and ice cream sandwiches to his
grandchildren. He also turned on programs such as ‘Phineas and Ferb’ for his grand-youngins, usually when they were actually there.”
And: “He despised ‘uppity foods’ like hummus, which his family lovingly called ‘bean dip’ for his benefit.”
And: “Terry died knowing that The Blues Brothers was the best movie ever, (young) Clint Eastwood was the baddest-ass man on
the planet, and hot sauce can be added to absolutely any food.”
The obituary spread in a way no one quite expected, not least Lahm, who told The Washington Post that “it’s really crazy how much attention it has gotten.” The remembrance received hundreds of comments on Legacy.com from strangers who’d never known Terry Ward. It resonated with them not just because it was funny, these strangers wrote, but also because it felt
relatable — and sincere...READ
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