| After his wife calls her son on the wind phone at Folly Farm Nature Preserve in Safety Harbor, Kevin McCullough ties a bouquet of birthday balloons to the open-air booth. That Sunday, Feb. 12, would have been Devon's 35th birthday. [IVY CEBALLO | Times] |
| Many, many times in the early years after my dad died, I’d go to pick up my phone to call and tell him something funny or ask for advice. Then, I'd remember he was gone. All this time, I should have just picked up a wind phone. Last week, my Tampa Bay Times colleague Lane DeGregory wrote about a wind phone in a Safety Harbor park. What's a wind phone? Here's what she reported: “A man in Japan had built a phone booth on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean, unwired, unconnected — so he could call his dead cousin. “The wind, he said, would carry his words. “He opened the booth in 2010, for himself and his family. The next year a nearby tsunami killed 15,000 people. Survivors started making pilgrimages to the phone to talk to lost relatives, to plead with them to come home, or to say goodbye.” DeGregory’s story is a stirring one. Bring tissues. I’m thinking I’ll stop by the next time I’m in Safety Harbor and give my dad some updates. |
| Here are some obituaries from the past week that I found in the obits section of the Times, in the news and from local funeral homes. If you see any with great details, please share them.
• Calvin Forehand, 93, "was drafted into the Army during the Korean War from 1951 to 1956 and did two tours in the Korean War. He joined the Army Reserves from 1956 to 1962 and re-enlisted during the Vietnam war, serving two tours in Vietnam from 1962-1970. He was very proud of being a part of the Intelligence School's move to Fort Huachuca, Arizona. In 1982, Calvin retired from Fort Myer, Virginia, as the ranking Sergeant Major Non-Commissioned Officer for the Army, serving as advisor to the Chief of Staff. That same year he started a security company with more than 500 employees."
• Louise Springer, 89, of Brandon "came to the Tampa Bay area in 1961 from Virginia. Louise and her husband Charles built many successful businesses with Louise supporting Charles while he attended college, and she was the sole book-keeper for all their businesses throughout her lifetime."
• "Mayor Carl" Norfleet, 81, of Aripeka "lived in Aripeka his entire life, running The Store (Norfleet Fish Camp) from age 16. He also fought to keep the Aripeka Post Office active when the government closed it briefly a few years back."
• Douglas "Ron" Hunter, 85, of Tampa "was a lifelong fisherman who enjoyed casting a line wherever and whenever possible. His favorite fishing spot was Englewood, FL."
Thanks for reading, hug your people,
Kristen |
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