When Memphian Ida Mae Sills passed away one year ago, her family remembered her with one of the funniest obituaries we have ever read. Well, on the anniversary of her death, Ida Mae’s relatives paid tribute again to this remarkable woman, with a memorial notice in The Commercial Appeal (and a photo of Ida Mae apparently eating dinner with her dog!). It’s not as long as the original obit, but it sure makes us wish we had met this woman:
Ida Mae Russell Sills
A year ago on Good Friday, the feisty ball of dynamite we knew as Ida Mae Russell Sills passed away. A year has passed since her obituary hit newsstands, creating an internet sensation and myth. The family has received calls from radio stations, newspapers, and magazines as well as celebrities and thousands of people who were touched by Mom’s sendoff. No better tribute can be given to a person than to be remembered through the gift of laughter. How does one write a lifetime of experiences into a small remembrance? The sadist [sic] thing I can imagine is to say a loved one has lived, now they have passed and whom they left behind. Our Mom (Ida Mae) was a survivor. She overcame a serious accident, she survived breast cancer surgery, she lived through open-heart surgery. She never lost her sense of humor. Ida said, “I have never made but one prayer to God: ‘O Lord, make my enemies stupid.’ Now I see God granted it.” Ida’s show on earth has ended, but her encore in heaven has just begun.”
Rest in Peace, Ida Mae.
