Passing of Janet Ray, 1983 Arizona Mother of the Year‏

Janet Ray, 1983 Arizona Mother of the Year, passed away May 24, 2013.  

The following obituary is from the The Arizona Republic.

Ray, Janet Andersen
(December 15, 1921-May 24, 2013). Janet Andersen Ray, beloved wife of Oakley J. Ray, devoted mother, revered sister, and friend to all, passed gracefully from this life on May 24, 2013 at the place she most loved to be--at home, surrounded by family, memories and music. Janet was born on December 15, 1921 in Howell, Utah to Hans Andersen and Mynoa Richardson Andersen. She was the fifth of their 10 children and had three brothers and six sisters. Janet was preceded in death by three of her daughters: Judianne, Linda, and Lana (Viehweg). She is survived by her devoted husband of nearly 70 years, Oakley, and their children Beverly Walker (LeeRen), Carol Soelberg (Glade), Joyce Clifton (Chuck), Sharon Snyder (Ray), Delwyn (Shelley), Norene Bean (Matt), Stan (Michelle), Judene Spiel (Bob), and Launette Shaw (Kelly). Funeral services will be held on Saturday, June 1 at 11:00 am at the LDS Mesa East Stake Center located at 2228 East Brown Rd, Mesa, AZ 85213. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Meldrums Mortuary. Janet's family wishes to express their sincere thanks to all who have so kindly supported them and Janet in thought, prayer and service. Donations may be made to United Families International at unitedfamilies.org

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Our thoughts and prayers are with the family at the passing of their wonderful mother.  We have all been enriched by knowing Janet.  Her remarkable family exemplifies the fruits of this loving mother. 

2013 Honored Mother of Education, Alonna Randall

 Meet Alonna Randall, one of two of Arizona's Honored Mothers of Education for 2013.

 

Alonna is a retired Music teacher who taught music in Chandler & Gilbert for 27 years! She received the Gilbert Superintendent’s “Excellence in the Workplace” award. She retired in 2010 after 39 years!

Alonna and her husband blended families in 1984, and together raised 5 children and have 20 awesome grandchildren!  She is grateful to her husband, Mark, who made it possible for her to be a mother and teacher at the same time. She has always served as a choir director & teacher in church. Currently she and her husband are serving a Young Adult group at ASU and she is teaching piano to their grandchildren.  She is very grateful for her years as a teacher, church worker, mother and grandmother!

We asked Alonna some questions and here are her answers: 

 

How can music enrich a child's life?  I have seen that children begin responding to music at a very early age! Music is the universal language; it transcends language barriers and cultures. Responding to music is as natural as walking or talking. I feel that students who study music have a better chance to succeed in their lives! Here are ten reasons that studies have shown help children in their lives:

 

·       Music enhances the  development of language, reasoning & math skills

·       Music helps master memorization

·       Music teaches excellence

·       Music gives children a sense of achievement

·       Students who take music stay engaged and focused in school

·       Music produces a sense of success

·       Music students do better in school

·       Music builds imagination and curiosity

·       Music develops creative thinking

·       Music builds confidence.

 

What things did you do as a mother and/or music teacher to encourage your children with music? I have taught piano lessons to each of our children and several grandchildren and it is such a bonding thing. We sing together most Sunday nights after family dinner, and we love it. Looking back, the following are some of the ways I tried to encourage our children and now our grandchildren with music.

 

·       Singing out loud to and with them

·       Listening to music in the home and in the car

·       Having instruments around for the children to play and experiment with

·       Incorporating music in our daily routines: singing while we work

·       Teaching through music. Singing the days of the week, alphabet, counting, etc.

·       Taking the children to musical productions and concerts

·       Singing together at family gatherings & Christmas Caroling

 

What are your favorite music ideas to do with families or your favorite family songs?

 We have a family tradition of singing, Happy Birthday to You on each birthday, but then we add a song, “Skip Around the Room” after the candles are blown out, and the birthday child skips around the room while we sing. It is a lot of fun!

 

We also go Christmas Caroling on Christmas Eve wearing our Santa hats and colorful red & green clothing. We walk up the street caroling and delivering goodies to our neighbors. It is a tradition that we look forward to. We also act out the nativity with songs incorporated in the script.

 

Two of our favorite family songs to sing were written by my husband’s grandmother, Bertha Kleinman. Those songs are: I Have Two Little Hands and Mary’s Lullaby! We enjoy singing hymns and fun songs as well.  Congratulations, Alonna!

Operation "Care Packages for Care Givers" a Success!

All I can say is THANK-YOU!
Okay, this is a blog, so you know I will say more than that. But there have been so many moments this week that have left me speechless! (What, you didn't think that was possible?) Several moms who brought donations shared that they really didn't like Mother's Day but were happy to be able to give to another mom.

"I feel like no matter what else happens this Mother's Day, I will be happy knowing there are moms getting a little lift." 

Wow! I hadn't thought of it from that perspective. I'm thankful they shared their feelings with me.

Making the deliveries was a highlight. I wish I could have brought everyone along to feel the tangible goodness of all the contributions.

Speaking of highlights. . . here a few of the gift bags. Yes, they are glowing. How could they not with all the love that went into them from your generosity?

This little wagon at Phoenix Children's, courtesy of our guide Lynze, saved our arms from having permanent gift-bag-handle indents. 

He we are in the lobby, Judy and Alyson helped me get some last minute donations into the bags!

Lynze gave us a tour of the tremendous new building at Phoenix Children's. They have amazing services there for children and their families, including a school, a library and a Garth Brooks donated "Zone" where patients can play pool, watch movies and so much more!

The gift bags at Phoenix Children's went to moms who are with a baby in the NICU. Lynze shared how community donations like these really touch the families who receive them.

***

Here we are later in the day at Banner Desert, with nurses in the Ante-Partum unit.  Twenty more gift bags went to mothers who are there waiting to give birth until they are far enough along. 

Melody Wagner & Me in the center surrounded by awesome nurses and hospital staff! The man in the group is Aaron Fritz who helped coordinate this effort on the hospital side of things.

Before we left the nurses were already delivering the bags to moms!

***

Forty care packages filled with goodies, journals, and gift cards to give a little comfort and cheer to mothers this Mother's Day.

Thanks to everyone who donated, shopped, picked-up, dropped-off, shared, emailed, called and cared for this project. We were also thankful to receive support from the following local business:

Massage Envy

Paradise Bakery

Pei Wei Restaurant

Safeway 

Be That Friend

When I was a relatively new mom--my first child was four and I was expecting our second--I picked up my son from a friend who had watched him while I'd been at the doctor. I thanked my friend and in just the few minutes I spent at her doorstep, she said some kind things about my son. Then she said some kind things about me, about me as a mother. It was a short, simple exchange but I remember it having an unexpected effect on me. Of course I felt encouraged. My son's life had been, in a word, complicated. He'd already endured numerous surgeries and required medications. I often wondered if I was doing anything right. She was the mother of six and if she observed anything praiseworthy in my mothering, I wasn't going to argue.

But the other result of her doorstep kindness was her example of seeing the good. I'm sure my faults were just as easy for her to observe, but she never mentioned those. Instead she cheerfully sent me on my way with a compliment on my mothering ability. How many friends do that?

This Mother's Day, be that friend.

Day 5

Call a friend and recognize her efforts as a mother. Point out what qualities you admire in her or how her example has helped you. Give encouragement to a a mother who might be facing a difficult time.

Take the Long View

I once heard someone compare children to 'slow-ripening' fruit. Often, we are tempted to try and assess how are children are doing or what they are becoming while they still in diapers. Have you ever eaten a very green banana? It's not pleasant, the bitterness masks the flavor and if you didn't know better, you might vow never to eat a banana again.

When we take the long view of our children's lives, we can better separate the trivial matters from the serious.We can step back and see which habits might need addressing and what behaviors we don't need to worry about.

Day 4:

Talk to a more experienced mother about the 'long view' and what she thinks are more important issues vs. the trivial matters. Also ask her about the longer-term rewards of motherhood. Write down her answers for reference on those 'green banana' days!

A Little Gratitude Goes a Long Way

Some say letter writing is a lost art. Sending thank-you notes may not be an art, but every year fewer notes get sent. Besides the arguments that technology is contributing to a less personal culture and even creating a hurried and frantic one, there is the craze of e-cards--while better for the environment, don't lend themselves to heartfelt letters.

This year, this Mother's Day, as the invitation for Day 3, consider writing a letter to you mother. Express gratitude for her love and influence. If she isn't living, write the letter and put it in your journal. If another woman mothered you, then find a way to express gratitude to her.

The amazing thing about this experience is it has a way of blessing both you the writer and the woman you are writing to. When we take the time to express gratitude, it softens our hearts, warms our souls and increases our own capacity to love. That's an art we cannot afford to lose.

What Kind of a Mother Are You?

This is the question my 7-year-old asks me when I serve food she's never seen, sing while doing the dishes or try to enforce bedtime. I usually take it to mean I'm doing something right. But it does make me chuckle . . . and then think. What kind of a mother am I?

The invitation for Day 2 of a more meaningful Mother's Day is this:

Make a list of the skills and attributes that you bring to the role of mother. Think about your unique gifts or talents. (Write your stage introduction with these qualities in order to put yourself in the frame of mind of noticing your strengths!)

Short, simple yet surprising. Put that list in your journal or even on your fridge --someplace where you can refer and even add to it, as needed.

Another Way for a More Meaningful Mother's Day

Have you visited a store recently and seen the the displays and aisle end-caps full of cards, gifts and flowers? Has your mind raced with thoughts of what you need to "get" or "do" for any of the mothers in your life?

Sometimes in the frantic pace of life, we can miss the entire meaning of an event, such as celebrating and honoring mothers.

Each day this week on the AZ AMI blog we will post short questions or activities to invite you to enjoy a more meaningful Mother's Day.

Day 1

Answer this: What do I love about being a Mother? Share your feelings with three mothers in your life or ask them the same question.


Thanks for stopping by.
We'd love to know what you think.
What do you love about being a Mother?

Time for a more Meaningful Mother's Day

I've heard the complaints. Mother's day has become one of those holidays-turned-minefield of conflicting emotions and expectations. I've heard the debates over who does the honoring (children or husbands), how to honor (homemade or store-bought) and even when (for some, mother's day doesn't begin until the breakfast-in-bed arrives.)

Some families reunite and celebrate, others bypass the day completely declaring it too commercialized. Whatever your thoughts are about the day, or your opinions of motherhood and how we honor mothers, consider this invitation for a more meaningful Mother's Day.

Join with me on behalf of Arizona American Mothers by giving care packages to a special group of moms. Right now there are dozens and dozens of children who are in our Phoenix area hospitals for extended stays due to illness or procedures--some for lengthy efforts to be diagnosed, others to receive treatments, and some hoping their life will be preserved. And next to that baby or child in the hospital bed, most often, is a courageous (and worried and tired) mom.

She is usually the first to advocate for her child, but maybe the last to ask for anything for herself.
If it sounds like I'm speaking from experience, some of you may know I spent some time in the hospital with our first child. Pardon the big hair, but here are before and after snapshots.(I haven't shared these pictures publicly before now.)

June 1994, Primary Children's MC, Waiting for transplant

July 1994, UCSF, 5 days after transplant

Intense days punctuated by long nights were the norm during that time. We were in cities without many (sometimes any) family or friends. A simple call or card meant so much. I'm sure this is why I have a soft place in my heart for families that are enduring this kind of challenge.

I'd love to have your help bringing these moms and their families a little comfort and cheer. No donation is too small (or too big ;) 

Care Packages for Care Givers

Mother's Day 2013

To Donate please email me at 

pass5tlp@gmail.com
or
Use PayPal and email address:
ArizonaAMI@gmail.com
Put "care packages" in the comments

·        Care packages will be delivered to the mothers of currently hospitalized children at Phoenix Children’s Hospital and Cardon Children’s MC.

·        100% of donations used for the care packages.

Needed Items:

Gift Bags 

Blank note Cards

Candy Bars –no nuts

Gas Cards ($10)

Restaurant Cards ($10)

Grocery Cards ($10)

Lotion, hand sanitizer 

Mints

Small journals 

Here's to a more meaningful Mother's Day.

Thank you for your support.

Written and posted by Tamara Passey, AZ Young Mother of the Year, 2013

How Does AMI Honor Mothers?

With luxury, laughter and love!

First luxury - this year the American Mothers Inc National Convention was held at the New York Waldorf Astoria. Yes, the Waldorf Astoria. Of course any hotel stay is a luxury for a mom, but the Waldorf provided historic, plush surroundings complete with fine dining and attention to detail. Even the dessert sported the iconic Waldorf logo.

Next, laughter - the attendees and honorees were treated to lunch with Kathie Lee Gifford. (Yes, the Kathie Lee!) She shared stories filled with humor and faith about what it means to raise children with character. She took questions and made time for pictures, too.

Kathie Lee Gifford & Tamara Passey - AZ
April 26, 2013

Montserrat Wadsworth - NV, Michelle Lehnardt - UT, Kathie Lee Gifford & Kim Hoey Stevenson - DE
April 26, 2013

Finally, Love! It started with warm greetings at registration and orientation, continued with  encouragement on speech day to settle nerves and finished with video tributes, celebration and hugs for everyone.

All this for mothers. Yes, the mothers. Mothers of the year, of the country, of the children they care for with dedication--in mostly ordinary but sometimes heroic ways.

Judy Ward AZ MOY, Mari Goodman AZ Mother of Achievement, Tamara Passey AZ YMOY
April 27, 2013

Thanks to AMI for valuing the work and sacrifice of mothers!