Each Life That Touches Ours For Good

One of my heroines passed away last week. My angel Grandmother.

I had the opportunity to introduce Grandma on a number of occasions when she came to be the special speaker at various events I was sponsoring. There were a multitude of things to say about her accomplishments and contributions to the Church, the community, the nation and the world, and I was always proud to tell people about how great my Grandma was. I typically told some of the usual things, and then told them some of the things that the average Joe wouldn’t know. Things that were most important to me like…

She LOVED Christmas, and the Decembers of my childhood were heroic because of Grandma and Grandpa – full of wonderful celebrations, acting out the nativity, fantastic food, gifts galore and Christmas morning visits to watch us unwrap our gifts.

She planned family events like no other: conferences, outings, vacations, bridal and baby showers, etc. to make sure we all had the opportunity to have fun, feel valued and learn – about other cultures, our family, the gospel, etiquette, etc. She used every opportunity to teach.

She loved to have fun – playing games like Rook, Skipbo and Dominoes with us at nearly every visit and typically winning.

She had a great sense of humor and was always encouraging the “Bradshaw” in us – especially my Dad and his silly puns.

She was a champion of the family and most importantly our family – praying for us, thinking about us, serving us, doing family history, creating our history books, and involving us in all of it.

She was generous to and very supportive of each of us– with our missions and education; being at birthdays, recitals, sporting events, etc.; giving us books every time she found one that would help us improve and grow; she even gave us gifts on her birthday.

She was an elegant woman who had amazing taste in style and clothing and always looked beautiful. Always.

She was a VERY strong woman who believed in the great good women can do in the world and for families.

She was an amazing and gifted speaker and the audience was always uplifted, fed and inspired when she spoke.

She was unfailingly obedient and endlessly diligent in following the Savior and His prophets.

She had a steadfast testimony and stood firm for Truth. And, she prayed as if she truly knew with whom she was speaking.

She was a light to the world, and her positive influence on me has made a huge difference, and hopefully will continue to do so for years to come.

She left an amazing legacy of example, teachings, goodness and far-reaching service. But, the thing that mattered most to me was and is that she is my grandma and I always knew that she loved me.

Thank you, Grandma! I love you.