Farewell, My Lovey

By MIKE WILSON

St. Petersburg Times

11/29/1995

ST. PETERSBURG — On Tuesday morning, the viewing room at Memorial Park Funeral Home bloomed with the bright colors of sorrow: pink carnations, red daisies, white baby's breath, yellow lamplight, shiny-blue casket.

Even the deceased seemed to glow. Her feathery yellow-white hair had been gathered in a tight bun and placed on her head like a golden crown. Her cheekbones shone pink like a baby's. Her skin was a warm bronze.

Just before 11 a.m., an old woman was led slowly into the viewing room. She held a black cane in one hand and a white-jacketed King James Bible in the other. Growing from the pages of the Bible was a tiny pink rose.

The old woman …