Rest in Peace - Mary "Tootie" Weisenberger
Born - Yazoo County, Mississippi - November 4, 1924
Entered eternal life - Conway, South Carolina - September 1, 2011
Funeral at St Mary Catholic Church, Yazoo City- September 3, 2011
We
come today at St Mary’s Catholic Church here in Yazoo City, to the parish that
meant so much to Miss Tootie, to celebrate her wonderful life, a life that was
a gift to so many people. Her daughter
Martha told me that the mass today should be a celebration, a celebration of
the life and the faith of this wonderful lady who touched so many lives. When I was talking about Tootie to all of the
ladies at the Friday afternoon mass that we had at the Martha Coker Green Houses,
a local asssisted living and care facility, they were all telling me about how
Miss Tootie took care of so many people, how she was not only a pillar of our
parish, but of the entire community here in Yazoo City. She worked at the Martha Coker home for years
when it was right near the hospital, where she loved and took care of the
patients and the other workers there.
She is still remembered so fondly by so many people out there, just as
her spirit is still so alive here in our parish.
When
we were selecting the readings for our liturgy today, I asked her nephew Pete
what he thought about the Beatitudes, and he thought that his Aunt Tootie
certainly was a peacemaker, that she brought love and peace to so many people
during her long life. Jesus addresses the
Beatitudes to the poor in spirit, to those who are persecuted for the sake of
righteousness, to the peacemakers, to those who are merciful, because those are
the people who place their entire trust in God.
And that is what everyone says about Miss Tootie – that her reliance on
God, that her trust in Him, knew no boundaries, that her faith was a beacon of
light for all who knew her.
Our
23rd psalm that we hear today is one of the most beloved passages
from the Bible, and it was the passage that Randy and Martha prayed with Miss
Tootie as she was entering eternal life with the Lord.
Miss Tootie had the Lord as
her shepherd, and he is leading her now to the restful waters, he is bringing her
comfort, peace, and rest. The Lord as
our shepherd is leading Miss Tootie in eternal life the way he led her here on
earth.
Even
though I had not met Miss Tootie, as she was already in South Carolina at the
time I arrived in Yazoo City last October, I feel like I know her from all that
people have told me about her. Her
spirit has been so alive here in Yazoo City even when she was not physically
present here anymore, and I know her spirit will live in so many people, in the
many people whose lives she touched. In
fact, Tootie’s daughter Martha told me that when she gets back to South
Carolina, they will have a memorial service for Tootie there because of all the
lives she had touched in the time she was there, that they wanted to honor and
remember her in that way. That says a
lot about a great lady of faith who touched so many, many lives. So, we celebrate the life of Miss Tootie
today in the mass, in the Eucharistic celebration that she loved so much. We celebrate her entry into eternal
life.
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