One day, after bingo awaiting dinner, we did an afternoon Bible study together from the Our Daily Bread devotional booklet out on the balcony of the facility. At a moment, she paused and said, "I don't know what's taking Him so long. I sure am ready to go Home, now."
--Love you, Aunt Irene, with all my heart! You're resting in His glory, now. Home, at last. (Heb. 11:9-10)

Just months before Aunt Irene's passing, I had the honor to visit with her one last time. She was hardy and insisted on her daily walks around the gardens and attending the stretching exercise class. We also did a Bingo session and went out (or, ordered-in a seafood, fish, and hush puppies dinner). I'd bring meals up to her room as it was immediately post-COVID, and guests weren't allowed in the dining rooms. She was no longer an avid Scrabble player, but we talked about all our previous visits doing so. She wanted some blue satin sheets or pillowcases, but I don't know if my package ever arrived before she passed.

Miss Irene was a well established member of Warrington Presbyterian Church when I first started going there in 1986. Always a delight and always very active. What a lovely inspiration for a young believer back then. Blessings to all those who will miss her.

Irene was my friend. May God be with her family.

Nanny was always a woman with more friends than she could count but more than enough love to share with them all. My earliest memories of Nanny always involve a lot of laughter, joy, and always, always enough food to feed double the amount of guests she loved to host. When I think about memories with Nanny, no one event comes to mind, rather than a general feeling of love and acceptance no matter the occasion. Whether it was playing cards with the family over the holidays (always impeccably dressed in a festive Christmas outfit), throwing golf balls for my dog when the family came to visit Westminster, or just having long conversations over a good meal where the main topic of conversation was Nanny praising all of her family and friends and recognizing everyone’s accomplishments with pride, Nanny was always a joy to be around and she will be missed dearly by all who had the pleasure of knowing her. 

When I visited Nanny in Westminster, I was impressed (but not surprised in the least) with how loved and popular she was in the community.
Already fully integrated, Nanny took every chance she could to introduce me to her new close friends and make me feel like the most welcome visitor. Of course, she would always do so with a beautiful smile.
Not everyone can dive into a new stage of life with such comfort and happiness, and seeing how eager Nanny was to make genuine connections and share them with whomever she could was an integral lesson I try to carry through every day of my life.
Nanny, you will be missed, and I will love you forever.

(Guess, I just can't restrict myself to 345 words...)

The fondest memories I have of family include Aunt Irene. 
I, too, recall her Southern drawl and hospitality. Even when she'd holler at us kids on vacation for putting soda cans in her freezer to make slushies (that exploded when we forgot 'em), she'd do so in the sweetest, kindest way (and make us clean it up). I loved the way she'd say "Truly" and was the only person I'd still let call me Joey. 

In her great familial kindness, even after my parents died (young), she'd remember me with an annual birthday card, long into my adulthood. She knew I had no one.

She didn't understand why I was fasting once on a visit, and said: "If the Good Lord wants you to find your lost friend in New Orleans, you will." (I did. And commemorated her in a 1-man play I did.)

I remember deveining shrimp with her for jumbalaya, and her saving a portion of homemade cabbage strudel for me for when I'd come to visit. She made Scrabble nights (her favorite) great fun--and competitive! LOL

Aunt Irene is one of the sweetest, sincerest ladies I have ever known. She will be dearly missed, until seen again in the Father's house.

Condolences to my cousins and their families at the loss of Aunt Irene--the last remaining sibling of the original Pensacola Klus family, who settled in the homestead area of Florida after Chicago.

Fortuitous timing, I got to visit her at Westminster Oaks in Tallahassee this past June 2021 (after COVID canceled 2020's plans for an Easter visit). Always a joy and to see and be with this li’l sweetheart!

On our visit together, we unknowingly broke the rules of not bringing a guest into the Parry Center residents' dining room, and discovered the joys of ‘dining in’ in her room with her meals delivered, take-out (Bistro), order-in (pizza), seafood out, and always extra desserts!

Morning vanilla lattés brought up from the downstairs Commons became her new daily favorite. Then, when the activities director came calling, she'd have me go off with her to morning stretching. (The pace of which was a challenge for me even in my 60s!) Then, we’d relax and plan the rest of the day. After lunch, she'd take me (or, vice versa) to the afternoon hymn sing-along--which we both thoroughly loved, and would sneak out from the popcorn social after to get to Bingo on time.

Generous as always, Aunt Irene would offer me a stash of her chocolate winnings back in her room, along with portions of her daily meals she thought I needed. Diligent, she’d not miss her afternoon exercise--an outdoor stroll around the grounds (her usual sidewalk loop) with more conversation while resting on the benches, after we swatted away the occasional ant.

We were both rather content when the other would suggest taking a nap before dinner. Amazing, for 98, how she could just keep going. My favorite moments were when we got to pray and read the Bible together and she’d talk about the goodness of our Savior, Lord Jesus to us. On more than one occasion, she’d say she was ready to go home but didn’t know why Father God was taking so long. Like me, everyone absolutely loved this lady!

Dear Family
Aunt Irene was truly a remarkable woman.  So sweet, caring, humble, loving, and faithful are words to describe her.  I just loved talking to her and hearing her sweet southern drawl and the way she said my name "Maaarlyn".   As a child, I remember the pecans she would send to Chicago from her home in Pensacola  and visiting her in the summer a few times.  Later I remember enjoying her visits to the Klus Family Picnic. Lastly, I remember visiting her at Westminister with cousins Bill,Joanne,Marianne.  She was so  happy in her studio apartment and had so many friends and lived life to the fullest.  I enjoyed reading her Christmas letters telling us all about her life and family.  She was so proud of her children and grandchildren.   Probably the most endearing memory I have is listening to her tell stories about her family and especially about my Dad, Louie.  When  I looked at later pictures of her, I saw my Dad in her.  Love and miss her greatly.   Marilyn

OBITUARY

Irene Richardson Lynch

October 20, 1922 – August 20, 2021

Bayview Fisher-Pou Chapel & Bayview Memorial Park

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