The words I said to Debbie, at her Memorial Service, on May 8, 2000 about 8:00 PM 
"With Helen D.(Helen D. was my favorite teacher and dear friend) On my left, Clara P. On my right (Clara P. was my dear grandmother Blackmore) and Debbie in my heart here I go,..........
Since back in August, every Friday for about eight months Debbie had her cancer treatment, and then she would come to my house and for two to three hours she'd have to sleep off the medication.  As she awoke I'd always kiss her on the forehead and say, "Hello Sleeping Beauty" and she would smile that smile we all know so well...    I spent this day thinking of what Debbie wanted me to say and what I wanted to say about her and tried to put the two together as my tribute to her.  When Debbie and I talked about this day I promised her I wouldn't talk too long, and she said, "Right...."  Debbie left me with three hearts, and this is one,  and she said, "This is your stress Heart, use it whenever you need it......" (a glass heart I held in my left hand)

First I thank Debbie for a movie she bought for me, one of my favorite oldies and it was the first movie we ever watched together, "Heaven Can Wait."  Also I want to thank Debbie for her wonderful sense of humor, it can't be ignored, she looked cancer in the face and made the best of this terrible thing, from the pre mastectomy party to referring to the movie "Heaven Can Wait" about Joe Pendleton and his going to his final destination... and me promising her that I will know her even if she does come back as a football player........

Also on behalf of my whole family, I say thank you Debbie, for being a daughter, a sister, a mother and a grandmother, even though we decided not to get married because of your cancer.

I thank Debbie too, for the many times she sat with me at my computer, as we did almost every single day for almost two years, checking to see what Kewpie had left us, to put on the webpage, and yesterday she was that Kewpie...........

Debbie always thanked me for two things.  She said, I introduced her to Elvis Presley and Hickman Kewpies... she said through me she acquired a deeper understanding of both... as Elvis sang,  "We'll make a space in this life that we planned and here we'll stay until it's time for you to go........"
So, I thank Debbie for being the inspirational force that allowed me to bring so many Kewpies from all over the country back together........ Because of her loving me enough, to be so unselfish and watch me spend so much of my time working on  that project, I dedicate my Kewpie website to her, because she is the Heart of My Kewpie Spirit...........  Back in February I started a Kewpie of the Month addition to the webpage and when Debbie retired from Joint Communications Information Service at the City of Columbia they honored her with a webpage.  Therefore I honored her as the Kewpie of the Month of April.  I then told her at the end of the year I would choose a Kewpie of the Year.  Well she let me know, who that Kewpie of the Year had better be..... Now she's the Kewpie of All Time, and her name will always be at the top of my page.........

I don't know if anyone knew, but Debbie loved chocolate, and that's the second heart.  Back on Valentine's day Debbie gave me a bag of heart shaped chocolates, so for the last three months,............ we neither one wanted to be the one, to eat the last heart....and oh how many unusual places that little heart showed up..... And that, I will never forget, and I never will eat the last piece, even though I offered it to her last Wednesday, she gave it back to me...........

My deepest sympathy to all of Debbie's family and I thank you all, for giving me the privilege to share the last leg of Debbie's life's journey with her.  We could not change the course of her illness, but I am thankful that we got to share that meaningful and wonder filled part of our lives together...........

Just a few days before Debbie died, she gave me a newspaper clipping she carried in her purse for a long time.  I think she wanted me to read it tonight.   The words of that clipping describe Debbie Smith, as eloquently as anyone could.  It said, "I expect to pass through this world but once; any good thing therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any fellow creature, let me do it now; let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again."

To quote only a small part of the words of Tony Amata, even though I can feel ever word of that song,
"I could have missed the pain, but I would had to miss the dance." And Oh, How we did dance......

Debbie saw the best there was in me
Which made me the best that I could be
She gave me faith because she believed
I'm everything I am
Because she loved me!

Weep not----weep not,
Debbie is not dead;
She's resting in the bosom of Jesus."

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