Comments on: Name Your Life

By: elise

elise — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:38:42 +0000

goodmorning everyone,
i have been thinking a large part of the night.
i want to go forward with the project, and it may be possible but here is the situation;
i don’t know how feasible it is for me to try to set this up now as my husband and i had originally thought of setting up a foundation with our own money, and that is only in 3-4 years. my husband is a lawyer and would have dealt with the administration and setting up of the foundation, he is a busy man trying to get his company in a good position so he may sell it well in 3-4 years. i can certainly try to raise seed money for the organization. it would no longer be a fund….i have to find the funds!
i will need to incorporate, get tax exempt status, non profit etc, i would need to recruit prominent/celebrated board members etc. this is all quite different than just paying ourselves to get things started and rolling and fill the cofffers etc. i have written ann an email with more details. if i/we do decide to give it a try now i will all keep u posted, get on facebook, skype.
am happy to read your thoughts, suggestions.
and again thank you so very much , i just wanted to test the waters on this idea i have been harboring for a moment. your support is inspiring.
elise
eb19035@gmail.com

By: Mary

Mary — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 04:24:43 +0000

The Bad Seed — very funny. That movie always gives me the creeps . . . like “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane”, and “Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte” — man, those were scary movies — I remember as a very young child, “Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte” was a sort of pop song we would sing, but we always knew the menace behind it — I’m getting chill bumps as I write this. “Death and the Victorians” — wow, how was that woman who died in 1820 still so well preserved? What genius embalmed her? I am really very squeamish — I can’t watch any hospital, trauma, plastic surgery, or CSI type shows — but a work experience has somewhat helped me dealing with death and the decomposition process. I used to work for a law firm that represented plaintiffs in the Tri-State crematory class action. Brent Marsh of the Tri-State crematory in Georgia basically just stopped performing cremations (his dad’s health was failing, and he never wanted to run the business), and chose instead to litter the grounds with the bodies. The GBI (Georgia Bureau of Investigation) found over 300 bodies in varying stages of decomposition, and documented the victims in photographs. Before we went to trial, I was given the assignment to identify the remains of the decedents of our clients. I had to go through thousands of the most grisly photographs you could imagine to get the trial exhibits. I told the lawyers that they could never show these photographs in a courtroom, unless they wanted people screaming, crying, passing out, and puking (like a bad sweat lodge, or an Ann Leary book reading — you’re TOO much, Ann!), and thankfully they took my advice. Still, the damage to my brain was done — still I think very kindly of these people — and kinda like the beginning of “Our Town” I think these human remains still have a sort of life (or at the least history and dignity) about them.

By: Lynne

Lynne — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 03:21:39 +0000

Once again, I am late! Elise, what a wonderful idea! I love things that are hands on in what can be a busy, impersonal world! Kudos to you and Ann!Please, please keep us posted, okay?

By: Tracy Edwards

Tracy Edwards — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 01:29:24 +0000

lolol Aislinn! I didn’t watch either because I’m a big wimp. I don’t like anything scary.

By: lisa

lisa — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 01:03:39 +0000

elise-
i’m on board, too! i absolutely love your idea! i can’t imagine giving our pets up and my heart breaks for people who have to. our shelter has so many animals being dropped off due to job loss, foreclosure, financial constraints, etc. it’s devastating at any age, for seniors especially.

By: elise

elise — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:48:41 +0000

ann and ladies,
i cannot tell you how it warms my heart and confirms what i have been thinking.
let me get back to you all and keep you posted.
i was really thinking of starting this with our own money and that is not for 3-4 years.
my daughter and son in law are here for dinner so can’t write any longer tonight but i will keep everyone posted. i will speak with a good girlfriend of mine who is a dog lover and a partner in a major law firm here in philadelphia and see what the first steps to such an endeavor are. for all you to know i am a retired architect from montreal, remarried a number of years ago to the most extraordinary human being in the world we live on “the main line” with our five dogs and if my english is sometimes a little surprising it is because i am french canadian and english is my second language.
mille mercis mesdames,
elise

By: Pamela

Pamela — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:51:14 +0000

I just had to put my 18-yr-old cat to sleep yesterday. She had failing health, but then had a stroke and there was nothing else that could be done for her. I would love to take the money I used to spend each month on her meds, etc. and donate it in her memory. She gave us such joy over her life, and I want to make sure that others can continue to enjoy their pets as long as they’re still on this earth to be cared for.

Such a lovely, caring idea, Elise.

By: Catherine

Catherine — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:48:47 +0000

lol@Aislinn! I, too, about had heart failure – ha.

By: Aislinn

Aislinn — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:34:13 +0000

That video scared the bejesus out of me! I don’t dare watch the one with the dead people. So much for a quiet night with a good book. I’ll need an EKG tomorrow.

By: Barbara

Barbara — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:06:04 +0000

Elise—what a wonderful idea !! Pets and seniors are perfect together. You’re right for all the reasons you mentioned. And such a wealth of ideas and support right here. Let us know how we can help and I’d bet we would all do what we can……keep us posted. Barbara