Author: rozannegates

It is always a sad and sentimental moment when one of our Legacy clients passes. This is especially true with the passing of the sweetest and happiest lady we know – Colleen Plantinga. Colleen’s favorite song was “Oh What a Beautiful Morning” from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical “Oklahoma” and her phenomenal daughter Prill Boyle, her son-in-law Mike Boyle, and her grandson Ev Boyle were singing this song to her as she took her last breath, in her own bed, on her own terms. She swam the width of the Ohio River when she was a young girl growing up in West Virginia. She never lacked for being the first in line to have a great adventure. She was even one of the very first airline stewardesses – for Eastern Airlines. She traveled to Europe on her own when she was only in her early 20’s. She graduated from Vassar in 1944 and decided to stay in New York rather than returning home. For their honeymoon, she and her husband John Plantinga hopped in a little red convertible MG and set out to drive cross country to California. They didn’t have much money and they spent one rainy night under a St.Louis bridge, covered only by a blanket. As the years passed, the travel accommodations did improve on their many trips to Europe and throughout the USA. But Colleen’s greatest joy grew in her gardens – her flowers. Colleen was a devoted mother, an avid gardener, and a very talented painter – painting mostly the flowers in her garden. The joy and love she brought to our lives is immeasurable. Not a day will go by that we don’t think of her. The flowers will miss her, too.

When YOU turn 100 years of age, give us a call and we will celebrate the moment with you. Our newest 100 year-old client celebrated her birthday with great glee and lots of family and The Legacy Project USA team was there to document the event. The results were spectacular and this is what her daughter had to say:

“Books arrived from Suzanne on Wednesday. Took it over to Mom yesterday. She was overwhelmed. Tears, then stories to go with the pictures and gratitude for the recognition and fuss made over her. A huge success. She and Harriet then took it down to the community room and the hairdresser’s to show all her friends and neighbors. I had already shown her the videos of the interview and the party but, we’ll watch them again over the weekend. This all turned our to be more extraordinary than I ever could have imagined. Thanks you for all you did to make it happen.” Terry D.

It’s what we do, it’s what we love to do, and we want to do it for you (even if you are younger than 100)