Confessions

Memorial Float Trip for Chase Savage

October 26, 2012 urngarden.com

Earlier this summer, my friend Chelsie took part in a float trip to celebrate the life of her brother on the Niangua River. She was kind enough to share the experience for other families that might be looking for a way to create a memorial.

Chase Alan Savage

Born to Neal Savage and Georgie Wooldridge in Lebanon, Mo. Chase was the first child and grandchild. He was very loved and very spoiled. Chase had a unique charisma about him and was very adventurous. His kindness drew an array of long lasting friendships from old to young. He loved the outdoors and loved his family. Most of his summers were spent at the river floating and hanging out with good friends. Chase finally found his niche traveling and doing dent repair. Following a storm in Arizona on November 20, 2010 Chase had a fatal car accident and died at age 27.

How long have you been doing the float trip? Is it an annual event?
We have done it two years and it is annual.

How did this idea come about?
Chase was an active part of the One Eyed Willies Campground on the Niangua River. Lifelong family friend, Brian Wilson is the owner and came up with the idea to get Chase’s friends together to remember his life and raise money for charity with a dinner, bonfire, and music after the float. 50-100 people turned out. We put the event on Facebook and took reservations and t-shirt orders. We provided the main course for dinner and attendees brought a side dish. Matt Johnson from Digit Silvers in Lebanon did our shirts.

Money raised from the float goes to different charities in honor of Chase. The Chase Savage Memorial Fund has donated to The Humane Society, Strong Kids, Hough Cemetery, and helps families in need during the holidays.

Thanks Chelsie!

Pet Tribute Charm Bracelet

October 24, 2012 urngarden.com

Custom designed bracelet — Etsy: BusyBree

While flipping through a magazine I found this sweet charm bracelet that is a cute way to capture the memory of a pet. I did a quick count and there’s approximately 14 tags on this bracelet. So you would have to have saved all your old dog tags over the years, or maybe you’re a pet hoarder and have tags from an assortment of pets. If you are short on tags you could substitute with other charms or trinkets and design your own personalized memorial.

Opal Fire in October

October 22, 2012 urngarden.com

Raw Opal Stone — Opal Specimen from the Willems Miner Collection

This weekend was the peak of fall color here in the Ozarks. We’ve got a golden glow and the fading light can mess with your mood. Opals are October’s birth stone and is nature’s prescription to Zoloft with supposed healing powers for depression. Almost all the opals are mined in Australia and an Aborigine legend has it that the stone originated in a rainbow. They also associate the Opal with peace and love.

Making a Memory Jar Pt. 2

October 21, 2012 urngarden.com

The modern day memory jar evolved from the old slave custom of making a memory jug to serve as a grave site memorial. We’ve showcased my friend Susan’s memory jars with a brief tutorial on the process. Creating a message in a bottle can be quite tedious and depending on the size of the jar, require an extensive collection of treasure to adorn it. Susan has switched up her technique and started using a black grout instead of the white. I love the look.

She’s embedded button covers, ear rings and pendants, old jewelry, and interesting bits of metal. These jars are so visually rich and is a good way for a hoarder to cull a collection of artifacts and recycle old flower vases and jars into a work of art. Susan works a section at a time and recommends laying out the area you plan to cover ahead of time, so that once you lay the grout down you can start applying the ornaments and keep the project moving.