Dorothy Mantooth Is a Saint!

Good evening,

For those who might not know me, I'm Kevin Garrigan, Anne's oldest son.

People sometimes have to make up nice things to say after someone passes away.  That won't be the case tonight.  It's very easy to truthfully say good things about Anne Marie Francis.

Though my mom left us far too early, I could not be happier with the constant gift of her presence while she was with us.  Her 54 years were too few, but the amount of living she did while with us was enough to fill several lifetimes.

The four of us kids could not have asked for a better mother.  She did such a great job raising us in a happy home.  Katie, Mike, Shauna and myself didn't make it easy on her by any means, but somehow she managed to raise 4 sometimes out of control kids and teenagers into 4 relatively well-adjusted adults.  There was no better Grammy to her 3 grandchildren.  Her face lit up and her joy was evident when she spent time watching Keegan and Brooke play; and of course the few precious months she got to spend with baby Colby were truly a gift. 

She had a way of putting a positive spin on most things, and would always be there to lend an ear and offer sage advise....I know I myself needed a lot of it.  I will miss our talks terribly.  Mom never wanted to put anybody out of their way.  In her eyes, it would always be better to give than to receive, better to love than to be loved, and especially better to be concerned for others than have others be concerned for her.  This of course drove us all crazy at times, because we have so much love for her and wanted to help her as much as possible.  None of us wanted her to fight this fight alone, and despite her best efforts, we weren't about to leave her side.  She was stubborn, but very well aware of the love that so many had for her.  She didn't have an enemy in the world.  If you were lucky enough to spend any significant time with my mom, you definitely knew that you were around a special person.  Whether she made you belly-laugh by telling stories about her youth and causing trouble for her parents and siblings, or offered soothing comfort after you had a bad day, there was just something about her that made you leave her feeling good.

I remember one time when I was about 10 years old, I decided to add laundry detergent to the washing machine after my mom had put a load in...probably like half a container or so.  It didn't take long for an endless stream of bubbles to start pouring out of the washer and all over the floor of the basement.  I did what most 10 year olds would probably do and ran upstairs to my room and denied it to the bitter end when mom started screaming at me.  I was the only one there, so I wasn't sure who I was trying to fool.  So after really letting me have it, eventually my mom "asked" me to come down to the basement and help her clean.  "Ok, but I didn't do it mom."  She said fine and we both went down to the basement to clean up the mess.  After about 5 minutes of silent cleaning, knowing that she was furious, I told her, "mom, I did put the extra detergent in there, I thought I was helping."  She told me, "No shit Kevin."  When she saw how guilty I was, she started laughing.  I'll never forget her face.  I couldn't believe it.  I figured at the time that I really messed up, not fully understanding that it wasn't the end of the world, because I didn't know any better...until my mom laughed at me.  She gave me a hug and we finished cleaning up the mess.  I probably had a hundred different fights with my mom when I was a teenager, but I always remembered that no matter how bad I screwed up, my mom loved me and we'd eventually be able to laugh about it, which we very frequently did, the older I got.

My mom was a true believer that being a good person and doing good things would come back around to you in some type of Karmic circle.  These are values that I live my life by and that I instill into my son, niece, and nephew.  I think my siblings will agree with this.  She knew that if she lived a good life, that when the day came when she had to leave us, she would be in a good place and with her lost loved ones.  I like to think that she's in that place know, breathing deeply and easily, and having a good laugh with her parents, her boyfriend Bob, and other loved ones around the dinner table.  I know that if I continue to follow my mom's core values, that I'll join her one day around that table.  It gives me peace to know that when I leave this world, I'll have the most special, strong, good-hearted, nurturing woman that I have ever known, waiting for me with a big hug, and a kind word.

I love you mom.  I'll miss you...and as you would tell me every time we parted, with a series of kisses on the forehead: Goodnight, God bless you, I love you, see you in the morning.

Thank you all for coming.  We are so lucky to have such great friends and family.  The outpouring of love shown by you over the last two weeks has been palpable, and something that the 4 of us will never forget.