Saturday, October 22, 2022
Eulogy for Marie Lucille Mashnouk for her Christian funeral mass on Tuesday, 18 October 2022
Good morning. Today we are here to celebrate the life of our beloved mother Marie Lucille Mashnouk. As her oldest daughter, I have the privilege and the honor to give the eulogy for her on behalf of our entire family. It is wonderful to be with all of you, whether you are here in the church or watching from home. We know that many of you have travelled a long way to be here today and we appreciate that. Please know that we love you all very very much.
Our mother was truly a great woman in every sense. We were very touched by the testimonies of so many people during the viewing of how she was like the ‘salt of the earth’ setting an example for so many people, and bringing them closer to God.
She was a woman for all seasons, with an abundance of love for everyone and everything.
Mom loved her family. She gave us the greatest gift of all, the gift of life, the gift of love, the gift of faith, and the gift of each other. We treasured every moment we spent with her, and we are not sure what we will do without her. She has accompanied us since the moment of our birth. She knew us better than anyone else. She was there through the ups and downs. She laughed and cried with us. She was a role model on how to love unconditionally as Jesus did. No matter how sad we may have felt about something, mom always put it in perspective, gave us guidance, and cheered us up. When no one else understood, there was always mom. She believed in us.
Mom loved her job. Not only did she raise four children, but she graduated college and worked her way up to the position of Purchasing Supervisor, for H.F. Henderson Industries, a company that specializes in Engineered Systems for Government and Industry. She, and we, were all very very proud of her.
Mom loved her country. She was fiercely patriotic, and before every meal we prayed and thanked God for WHO we are, WHAT we are, and WHERE we are.
Mom loved her church, St. Mary’s in Denville, where founded and she served for many years as President of the Rosary Society. She led the Rosary before the 9:45 mass every Sunday. She distributed rosary beads to people around the world, and attended Monday novenas to the Blessed Mother, and faithfully wore a necklace with the miraculous medals she collected from her pilgrimages around the world. It was a very heavy necklace. For as long as we can remember, the picture of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was on her piano in our living room. She wanted that picture prominently displayed in church so that the rays of mercy that emanated from Jesus’s heart would touch everyone who came there to pray. Together with my dad, and in thanksgiving for their blessings, they refurbished a prayer station to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in the back of St. Mary’s Church. They donated a statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe to St. Cecilia’s Church in Clearwater Beach, Florida, when my sister Theresa was healed of cancer. They supported many charities, and mom was particularly fond of ‘Boys Town’, a charity that helps children in need of love and hope.
Mom loved to pray. She prayed all the time. She would sit out in the sunshine and pray. In fact, she had so many prayer cards she needed big rubber bands to keep them all together. And she didn’t have just one package, she had many packages, in fact drawers full of cards packaged with rubber bands that she prayed every day. Anyone who has been to our home knows that over the door to our porch was a big arch of pictures of all the holy places she and my dad had visited, and all of the angels and saints that she prayed to. Every inch of the wall was full. It’s no wonder that our family has been blessed. Mom made sure of that. We know she continues praying, and watching over us all from above.
There are not enough words to tell you all the wonders of our mother. But you will understand how much each of us loved her by the pictures we have of her. Her daughters and her grandchildren are always hugging and kissing her. In her last days when she was not well, we all took off from work and flew in to be by her side. In the hospital where she was, it was sad that some people had no visitors, but not mom, she had a parade. The nurses welcomed ‘The Mashnouk Brigade’ every day as we all filed into her room to be with her. Everyone in the hospital was touched to see her grandchildren sit by her side day after day telling her how much they loved her.
This comes as no surprise - it has always been that way in our family. When mom and dad lived in New Jersey, Rachel and her family watched over them. Rachel passed every morning with coffee and bagels – it was the highlight of their day. When mom and dad lived in Florida, Theresa and her children lovingly cared for them, attending to their every need. In their final months, her grandchildren Maria and Nicholas Julian, who live in Florida ,especially cared for grandma. Maria was their personal assistant, and Nick took them to church and made sure beautiful bouquets of roses were never missing in their home. Their other grandchildren would have done the same, but they lived much further away. Rosemarie and Bob would stop everything and fly in from California or Texas to visit at a moment’s notice. When dad passed away, mom looked at Rosemarie and said: Rosemarie, what are we going to do? And as for me living in Switzerland, my family and I visited and called as often as we could. I had a special bond with mom because we shared a similar disability, believing that with God nothing is impossible, and that one day we would be healed. Mom never complained about her disability, and she never let it stop her. We are happy to know she is in heaven, perfectly healthy now, and singing and dancing to all of her favorite Frank Sinatra songs – and who knows maybe he is singing along with her too.
My mother was our biggest fan and cheerleader. She always told us to ‘Shine like the bright shining star that you are’. Well mom, when we look up to the heavens, we will see you there as the bright shining star you have always been to us.
For our family, today marks the end of an era. We sadly lost our beloved father in June and now our dearest mother in October. Dad never lost his love for life and was still planning to go on a cruise to Alaska before he passed. Mom said she was not afraid of dying and that she looked forward to being in heaven with Jesus and Mary. We are comforted to know that she is now there with dad, as well as her family members who have gone before her.
We are grateful the for the time that God granted us to share with our parents. We thank them for sending us the sign of a ‘double rainbow’ to know that they are happy together, in a place of love, peace, and light - a place that awaits us all. The legacy of love, kindness, and compassion that they taught us will live on in the way that we live our lives, and how we care for each other.
We know how much mom loved the pretty blue flowers called ‘forget-me-nots’. So, we have all decided to plant them in our gardens and nurture them year after year. They will forever remind us, mom and dad, of your beautiful souls - as you are truly ‘unforgettable’.
We will end as mom would have liked us to, with a prayer – a united prayer whose power will endure forever. So let us join hands and pray. Jesus said that whenever 2 or more of you are gathered in my name, there am I with you. So, He is here with us today. In His name we all pray together and thank God, who hears and answers every prayer, that He grant us perfect health, washing our genes clean of all illness and disability; that He grant us happiness and prosperity, not only for ourselves, but also for our families, our loved ones, our countries, and the world. Amen. Thank you.
