Words of Hope: Grief

Hope, Dad’s dog knew he was dying. She lay by his bed and would rest her head on his arm. When my dad passed away, we knew that my mom could not keep her because she was too strong...

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Words of Hope: Letters of Love

I opened Dad’s desk recently and found hundreds of random note cards. Some were covered in images of nature; others were blank white cards or cards printed with words like thank you or I love you. Opening this drawer...

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Words of Hope: The Lord’s Prayer

Dad loved the Lord’s Prayer, and it was one of his favorite ways to pray. Here is how time with Dad praying the Lord’s Prayer together would go.Our Father (I am not an only child! God, you are Father...

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Fred Crowell’s Celebration of Life

We would like to invite you to Fred Crowell’s celebration of life ceremony Sunday afternoon, May 29, 2022, at an event center in the greater Spokane-Post Falls-Coeur d’ Alene Metro area. We don’t know how many people can come, so; please...

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Words of Hope: RPE4FJC

My brother Jay created RPE (one of my dad’s favorite slogans, which stands for Relentless Pursuit of Excellence) and FJC—my dad’s initials Fredric James Crowell. RPE4FJC means that I commit to living intentionally in a spirit of excellence each...

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Words of Hope: Outside of Time

My Dad left me a lengthy voicemail before he died. I waited to listen to it for a few weeks after he passed, waiting for a time I really needed to hear his voice. One day, I was ready...

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Words of Hope: Wisdom

My dad had wisdom that resulted in practical ways to live. Before he died, I asked him about a parent who had a young child acting out in preschool— hitting others and disobeying the teacher. The parent felt overwhelmed....

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WOH: The Daily Examen

Our whole family often jumped into learning what Dad was learning. He was so infectious and enthusiastic; he inspired us to understand what he was learning. One of his favorite spiritual teachers was Ignatius of Loyola. Dad loved to...

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Words of Hope: Mealtime Conversation

Our family created a ritual around mealtime conversation. This ritual refined through the years, but it emerged from my Dad's quote he often used, "Great people talk about ideas, mediocre people talk about things, and small people talk about...

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Words of Hope: Brave

Dad and I loved to go to movies and see them on the big screen. One of our favorite movies was 1917. We loved the panoramic scope, the intensity of just one day, the visceral experience of World War...

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