The Houston Chronicle recognized outstanding nurses during a luncheon on May 2, 2023. Each year, the Houston Chronicle honors the top nurses across Greater Houston during their Salute to Nurses event. In 2023, 200 recipients were selected through a public nomination — included are seven UT Physicians employees. Kenne was recognized as one of the Top 15 this year.
“And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes:” Genesis 18:27
Theologians may debate the right or wrong of cremation, but such an academic debate means nothing in the end, it’s an individual’s choice.
Mother, an avid reader and student of the Bible, grew up in a conservative Christian family in rural northern Alabama. Among her many stories of her childhood, which she titled,  “the little girl from Alabama,” was going to funeral services, during which the children would be outside the church playing in the cemetery across the road.  Even near her death in 2006, she talked about Hall  Cemetery in Lincoln, Talladega County, Alabama. However, the story near her death was not of a little girl playing in the cemetery, but of a black dog and a man in a black suit walking in Hall Cemetery.
Although one might think Willie Agnes Poe (Salter) was fixated on cemeteries and therefore being laid to rest in one, this very holy woman had made plans for her body to be donated to medical science — the Texas Medical Center in Houston Texas, after which her body would be cremated.
In the end, her affairs were very organized, my only responsibility was to see that they were carried out. The one thing neither of us expected was that it would be almost six years before we would receive her ashes. On May 23, 2012 (my brother Tom’s birthday), we received her ashes.Â
With all her planning, the one detail she didn’t stipulate was what she wanted done with her ashes. There are several possibilities, from which I will be receiving family advice. But for now, her ashes are in the William K. Turner Sacred Raka Urn we ordered from Sacred Ways. (I can hear her now, “You shouldn’t have spent the money!”)
Chase Morris & Great-Grandma Agnes — Image by kenne
A SON’S LOVE
I thought about yesterday Remembering the moments
I thought about today Taking a big breath.
I thought about tomorrow Exceeding my grasp.
I thought about time Wondering about timeless.
I thought about life, Asking the question.
I thought about people, Knowing not what I see.
I thought about what is, Wondering why?
I thought about ideals, Seeking what should be.
I thought about truth, Confusing it with the facts.
I thought about art, Becoming aware.
I thought about love Touching the feeling.
I thought about Joy, Feeling love inside.
I thought about you, Walking with long shadows.
I thought again of tomorrow Sharing your path.
We miss you, every day!
kenne
P.S. Today is the birthday of Joy’s mother, another great-grandma, Virginia Chapman — HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
“The Summer of Suffering” Mother just weeks before she passed away, September 8, 2006 — Image by kenne
Brother, Thomas R. Turner — Image by kenne
Today, brother Tom is 70 years old.
This is a special day for many reasons,
among then the day that our mother
celebrated her second birthing day.
She was so proud to have another baby boy.
This morning,
the day became even more special
learning that we will be receiving
our mother’s ashes next week.
It has now been almost six years
since Mother passed away
and as per her wish,
her body was donated
to the Texas Medical Center in Houston.
This was her gift to medical research
and the future of human kind.
Raised a Southern Baptist in Alabama,
she knew many in our family
would think harshly of her decision,
but as it was she had outlived
many of those who may have been critical.
Mother would be the first to tell you
she had lived a full life —
making many poor decisions.
However, donating her body
was a decision she researched
and made years before her death.
Chase Morris & Great-Grandma Agnes — Image by kenne
