Sandy M., Brent’s Mom

On the weekend of Sept 13-15 a group of POS members met in Missouri for the second annual Midwest POS retreat. We had a "memorial" area where we put pictures, mementos, etc. of our children.

Friday night was a night of talking, getting to know one another, sharing our children, etc. Saturday was spent listening to special music, including some music of Garrison, Sue's son....he had a great talent. We were also honored to share in listening to tapes of the services of Johnathon, Deb's son, and Cody, June's son.

We had a balloon release later in the afternoon. There were probably at least 60 regular balloons and one special butterfly balloon for all of POS children. It was an awesome sight. That evening we played bingo. Then we had a candle lighting ceremony. There was one big candle for POS, encircling that we placed 30 candles for those POS members who specifically requested a candle lit for their child, and then all of us there had our own candles. There was also a special butterfly candle holder that held four tea candles. As these candles were lit I read this poem:

Four Candles for You

The first candle represents our grief.
The pain of losing you is intense.
It reminds us of the depth of our love for you.

This second candle represents our courage.
To confront our sorrow,
To comfort each other,
To change our lives.

This third candle we light in your memory.
For the times we laughed,
The times we cried,
The times we were angry with each other,
The silly things you did,
The caring and joy you gave us.

This fourth candle we light for our love.
We light this candle that your light will always shine.
As we gather at this Midwest retreat and share this night of remembrance with our family and friends.
We cherish the special place in our hearts that will always be reserved for you. We thank you for the gift your living brought to each of us.
We love you.
We remember you.

~Author Unknown~ Modified for the Midwest retreat

Sunday was again a time of talking, sharing, etc. The whole weekend was a special time of sharing hugs, tears, our children, and laughter. Oh, and the food!!! I think we could have stayed another week before we ran out....we have some great cooks in POS. Next year's Midwest POS retreat will be held September 11-14 and we hope to see some more of you there.

Editor’s Note: Alice, mom to Randy Pete, provided this list of the folks that attended this year’s retreat. Alice and her husband Rusty host the event.

Ed and Sandy Malek parents of Brent from Iowa
Karen Strobel-Tronecker and son Russ and Pene (Karen’s friend) mom of Fred from Wisconsin
Lloyd and Bev Carson parents of Stephen from Illinois
June Reeves mom to Cody James Ervin from Arkansas
Tracy Walkup and son Andrew and hubby Robert from Missouri, mom to Daniel
Deb Martens, mom to Johnathan, from Carl Juction,Missouri
Bobbo and Candy Umstead and daughter Samantha from Missouri, parents of Skippy
Alice and Rusty Isabell from Missouri, mom of Randy Pete
Alice’s dear sweet friend Connie Haight from Missouri, mom of Bobbie