Dawn Kanas
Dawn Kanas was one of the most intelligent, loving, and compassionate people that ever lived. She loved with such a passion, when speaking with her you would feel consumed with her attention.
In June 1992, Dawn married her best friend, soul mate and love of her life, Gregory Kanas. She loved Greg with every fiber of her being and no one except God was more treasured by her. She was truly a Proverbs 31 woman – her value was “far beyond rubies”.
Dawn adored children, and made it a regular practice to be a blessing to every child she encountered. She embraced the philosophy that if you loved, valued, and appreciated children they could overcome anything.
Dawn was a champion – she guarded and protected her friends. She always defended those being treated cruelly or unjustly.
Dawn was fun! She had a very contagious and boisterous laugh. When she found something amusing she was sure to share it with the whole world. One could not help but laugh and feel at ease in her presence.
Her talents covered a multitude of venues, especially in the visual arts. She designed, decorated, and embellished the home she and Greg shared. Her sewing skills were beyond magnificent. She could draw, paint, and craft beautifully. She wrote phenomenal poetry and captivating stories; her imagery was sheerly amazing. She loved to read and enjoyed applying her newfound knowledge.
Dawn departed suddenly at the age of 40. She now sings with the angels and communes with her Lord and Savior. She was a jewel in our lives that can never be replaced. She was truly a gift from God.
Candace “Candy” Kashner
One of Candy’s special qualities was she was faithful to those she loved. She had a beautiful spirit and generous heart. She loved to see people happy, and she was good at bringing people together. She was charismatic, and people were drawn to her. She was a good listener who was easy to talk to. She loved her family unconditionally. Her friends say they never knew anyone who made them laugh as much as she did. They never knew what she might come up with, and her mind was always clicking. Candy loved to have a good time, and she enjoyed playing practical jokes. She was known for unexpected visits and special gifts for no particular reason. She was fun and brought joy to those who knew her. She had a spunky and upbeat personality, and she lived life to the fullest.
Her grandson Mike says she was the best Grandmother in the universe. She loved to spoil him, and she was generous to other people, too. She donated supplies to kids with special needs and helped the less fortunate. Grandma always said she loved him with hugs and kisses. She took a million pictures of him and showed them to everyone. She made him feel loved and special. Her daughters say she was a great role model. She taught them how to express themselves and be comfortable telling people they loved them. Candy taught them to celebrate life. She loved to shop and prepare for gatherings with family and friends. She had a way of making people forget about problems and enjoy the time they spent with her. One of the most valuable gifts my mom passed to us was the gift of self-confidence. We grew up believing we were in control of our lives, and we could be whatever we wanted. She encouraged us to follow our dreams and make the most of our gifts. Her self-confidence was contagious.
Mom’s relationship with Dad was the foundation of our family life. They were truly soul mates and best friends. They were always holding hands, singing love songs and using pet names for one another. They shared the same dreams, valued the same things. She taught us to have faith in God’s plan when times were hard and to keep a positive outlook. Mom showed us how to maintain a relationship with good communication. She taught us it was okay to be wrong and make mistakes if we learned from them. She taught us to forgive others, and believe in the golden rule, treat others as we want others to treat us. Mom was there when we needed her. She was gifted at making sense out of chaos, solving problems and helping others. Her daughters believe they were more fortunate than most people because they were her kids, and they got to spend the most time with the best mother who ever lived.
Terry Keaton
When asked to write this, it took me several months to even sit down with pen and paper. How can you sum up the life of a beloved in a couple of paragraphs? I could tell you Terry came from a family of seven children, who all loved him dearly. We have four lovely children. The pride and joy of his life was being “Paw Paw” to our six beautiful grandchildren. You might even find it interesting to know he spent 35 years of his adult life working for the same company – Ingersoll Rand, where he had many life long friends. None of these things made the man I want you to know.
Terry is better known for the kind, loving, humble spirit he was to everyone he met. He always gave of himself unconditionally. He believed in doing his good deeds in secret if possible. There could not be a better tribute to him than to have his last gift given to a complete stranger.
Because of the gift of sight you received, my prayer is that God allows you to see the world as Terry did. He always looked for the good in everyone. He never said anything bad about anyone. Even in his last days in the hospital after months of suffering, he was thanking and praising God for the goodness and mercy extended to him. Oh, what many lessons of life this man taught me!
Please use this precious gift to see the world through his eyes and you will never want to look back.
The family of Terry Keaton
James Ralph Kelley
James Ralph Kelley, age 43, of Whiteville, NC, was killed instantly in an automobile accident near Supply, NC., November 7, 2005. He was born February 26, 1962 in Rockford, IL.
In honor of his father, Jim entered the U.S. Navy in 1983, and received an honorable discharge in 1996, due to cancer. He was declared cancer-free in 2004. He traveled all over the world, flying with the Navy jet pilots, as an electronic technician.
Returning to New Mexico, he finished college and worked as a lab assistant with hazardous materials. Also, he was a business partner in the trans-shipment of tropical fish in New Mexico. However, the lure of the ocean brought him back to the east coast where he bought a seaworthy boat and pursued his love of fishing.
Jim was a rabid Chicago Bears and Chicago Cubs fan. He also excelled in outdoor grilling, always ready to show off his cooking talent to family and friends.
At the time of his death, Jim was Assistant Manager at Sherwin-Williams Paint Co. of Whiteville, NC. He was inurned at Ft. Bliss National Cemetery near his father’s gravesite.
Carl Kerr
We are delighted to submit the following information about our brother Carl Kerr, who recently went to be with the Lord. We were also grateful for Carl’s contribution to the Eye Bank and hope that others in our family will take his lead and become organ donors.
We would like for you to know that Carl was a very fun loving person who was always the life of the party. Carl had a passion for his job, and retired from Squibb-Bristol Myers in New Jersey. Carl loved riding his motorcycle, and was known as Blackfoot for all the tricks he could perform for a crowd. He loved telling jokes, and getting a laugh out of almost anything. Carl was loved by all who met him and never met a stranger. If you were ever graced by his presence you never forgot the experience. One of his more popular sayings is “every time I leave my Bible, I run into a sinner whose soul needs to be saved”. Now he was the one who needed to know what was in the Bible.
In the last few months of his life, Carl dedicated his life to God, and became a Christian. He joined the male choir, and worked with other groups in the church. He was committed to the church and the ministry, and died serving God.
Carl’s life was much too short, and we certainly miss him, but our loss is heaven’s gain. It is our continued prayer that others will give life by donating organs to organ banks here in North Carolina. God bless you in your effort to help others, and thank you for allowing us to be a part of this tribute, not only to Carl, but to all the others who have donated.
Sincerely,
Laura Corbett and Shirley Dunn, sisters of Carl Kerr
Samuel Franklin Key III
November 21, 1947 – September 12, 2005
There are so many words to describe “Sammy” as friends and family knew him but the ones that come to mind are warm, gentle, loving, caring, understanding, and unselfish.
Sammy had been disabled since the age of 44, so he really didn’t get to enjoy the things he loved most – hunting and target practice with his buddies.
Limited in what he could do physically, he made up for it in other ways. If you needed someone to talk to, call him. If you had a problem and wanted advice, or needed a shoulder to cry on, he was always there for you. No matter how bad he felt physically, he could always make you laugh.
Family was important to him. Never a day went by that I didn’t talk to him, and never a week went by that he didn’t call our brother who is out of state and uncles left in the family. When I called to tell them he had passed away, the one remark I got was, “I’m sure going to miss his phone calls, he always made me laugh”.
Growing up as children we all had chores to do to earn our allowance. I will never forget when it came Sammy’s time to sweep the front porch. He would say, “You do it and you can have my allowance. No one is coming by here and see a broom in my hand. That is for girls.”
The one thing he was most proud of was being a Vietnam veteran. He earned several medals and a bronze star during his tour with the Army.
Sammy would give you the shirt off his back if he thought you needed it. He knew that organ donation was something special and being the person he was, it was only natural to donate his eyes. Knowing that two people can now see because of him would make him very proud.
We miss you, we love you, and we know that you are at peace in God’s hands.
Your loving sister and brother, Nancy and Rusty
Steven King
Sitting down to write this is very difficult to do. A single page to describe the life of Steven King is insufficient, but we all owe it to him to try. The best way to begin is to tell you all why we owe it to him. To many of you Steven King is just a name, a group of letters arranged to symbolize sound. But Steven was so much more. Steven was dedicated, funny, compassionate, optimistic, clever, humble, and gentle. Steven was the kind of person who not only would give you the shirt off his back but would also run a mile just to hand it to you. He had the kindness of his mother and the strength of his father.
Steven was also one of those amazing individuals who always had time for everyone. It was like he had a time machine in his pocket that allowed him to accomplish so much. While alive, he participated in cross country, track, drama, Quiz Bowl, Ohio Model of United Nations, National Honor Society, jazz, pep and marching band, and solo and ensemble performances. He also participated in basketball, Noble County Knights soccer, Spanish Club, CATS (Concerned Adolescents about Teen Sexuality), and he attended Center Free Methodist Church, Caldwell United Methodist Church and Faith Baptist Church, and was also a member of the Ohio Valley Emmaus/Chrysalis Community, and somehow managed to do them all with a passion that made him a leading voice in all of these activities.
Today we gather so that we can remember and you can learn about Steven. Today you read this because Steven was willing even in death to help anybody he could. Today we come together to realize that Steven will never leave us, he lives on, in the stories we tell about him, in the small ways that he altered the world and tried to make it a better place. Steven King lives with us in our hearts, and now yours.
Written in conjunction by one of Steven’s dear friends, Wesley Bishop, and Steven’s mom, Naomi King.
Matthew David Kwiatkowski
Matt was born in Olean, NY - he was my first born and the sunshine of my life. When he was 18 months old we moved to North Carolina. As a child he loved collecting things – the first was Hot Wheels cars, trucks and semi-trucks. He would always say he wanted to be a truck driver and how much fun it would be. As he grew older his interest in collecting would change. He collected all he could of Garfield. He even wrote to the creator Jim Davis to express his interest. I still have the return letter from Mr. Davis. After Garfield came Beanie Babies. He had over 100 in that collection. Then it was old soda bottles, having over 150 of them. The last collection he was working on was that of old money.
Matt’s favorite sport was NASCAR, Dale, Jr. being his favorite driver. He had started collecting Dale, Jr. items. He liked nice cars – when he purchased his car, it was of course a Chevy Monte Carlo, the same as Dale, Jr. He had real big plans for that car. The very heartbreaking part is that his favorite car would be the one he would lose his life in.
Matt loved going to the beach, and was a very thoughtful son, always bringing me a dolphin back for my own collection.
Matt’s life with us was a short one. He was only with us 19 years, but in him we all saw a very special person. When he walked into a room and smiled he lit up the whole room. Everybody that met him became a friend to him almost instantly and loved him dearly. He touched so many people young and old and all who knew him will remember him not only in their memories, but in their hearts as well.
I pray that the individual who received his beautiful blue eyes is now able to see the change and beauty of each day and every season.
Phyllis Skruch, mother
On January 4, 2005, I lost my pal, buddy and son who was 19 years old, due to an auto accident.
In what seems like an eternity since then, it amazes me the way in which one’s mind responds and remembers. Every little memory is personalized.
My son lived 600 miles from me, with his mother. Although my memories might be few compared to some fathers, each one I have is so precious and has grown in relevance.
Matt was born on August 30, 1985, at 6:36 in the evening. I was there in the delivery room. What an indescribable miracle, witnessing the birth of your child. Every moment seems to be imbedded in my mind like words chiseled in stone.
I would love to list all my greatest memories of his life, but I can’t, because I might be writing forever, as there are so many. So from the delivery room to the funeral home I have all these memories and keep wondering what the sum of them would be…only to see the outpouring of love as he was laid to rest, as friends and families paid tribute to him. Does the equation end here? No! It lives on in all of our memories and for someone in their eyes.
Lawrence Kwiatkowski - father
