Today is the day of Professor Howard's funeral service, and Ken is ready to get the reading of the obituary over with. Toni and Ken drop off Evan to Tara's house. Ken decided to drive to the funeral. He grabbed Toni's hand without looking off the road and kissed her hand.
"I'm ready, to say goodbye." Toni said. There was silence in the car for ten minutes, until Ken pulled up to the church. He gave a final kiss to Toni before entering the church. Toni's heart sank when she saw her mentor laying in his casket, stone cold. She got a little nauseous and stepped outside to catch a breather.
"We're going to be okay, baby girl. I love you." Ken said while placing a small kiss on her cheek. She smiled weakly, and they entered the church. They walked in to see family and friends, faculty and staff, along with students from Bowie State.
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The choir sang a few hymnals such as "Pass Me Not", and "It Is Well with My Soul". It was time for Ken to read the obituary.
"Next up, we have one of Richard's dear students, Mr. Kenneth Edmonds, doing the reading of the obituary." Bishop James said. Everyone applauded and Kenneth got on the pulpit. He looked at Toni who smiled at him, before he could speak. He cleared his throat and looked at the closed casket.
"Before I do the reading, my heart is very heavy, along with my girlfriend, Toni. I want to say thank you to the family of the late, Professor Howard, for letting me read the obituary." Ken said. Everyone in the congregation clapped their hands and he began to read.
"Richard Samuel Howard Jr., was born on March 24th, 1953 in Baltimore, Maryland, to the late Dianne Howard and Richard Howard Sr. He was the third child out of the five, and he was very unique. His family moved to New York, in 1963, so they can live a better life. There in New York, he attended Bethel Elementary School, remaining number one in his class. In 1970, Richard graduated from high school, and was involved in many sports such as track and field, basketball, and swimming. In August of 1974, his father died of a heart attack, three months later, his mother passed away from breast cancer. Later that month, He was determined to succeed in life, so therefore he enrolled in Columbia University, located in New York. He graduated with his Bachelor's degree in Chemistry, later going to Bowie State University, to receive his teaching degree. He taught at an elementary school before working at the college. In 1982, he married his high school sweetheart, Rita Crooks, later on having four children together: Damon, Lisa, Alecia, and James (deceased). Richard never wanted sympathy from others due to him having cancer. In 2004, the same day Richard was diagnosed with stage one pancreatic cancer, his son, James was killed in a motorcycle accident. Richard enjoyed working at Bowie, for the last fifteen years. Richard survived by his wife, his children, three grandchildren, many nieces and nephews, cousins and so forth." Ken said. Everyone stood up and gave him a standing ovation. Ken got from the podium and went back to his seat next to Toni.
"You did good, babe." Toni whispered in Ken's ear. He smiled and then he placed his two hands over his face, to hide the tears. The choir sang "Great is Thy Faithfulness", which made Ken breakdown into Toni's arms. That specific song gave him flashbacks at his parents' funeral.
"It's okay, honey. I'm here for you." Toni said while placing her chin on his ear. The choir was still singing and Toni closed her eyes, and put her sunglasses over her face, and tears started to flow.
"Thank you choir. Now, in a few minutes, we are going to do the final viewing of the body. The ushers will direct you, so we can make this go a little faster. Remember, please respect Richard and his family, by not taking photos of his deceased body. Thank you." Bishop James said.
"Are you ready to say your final goodbyes?" Ken asked. Toni nodded her head and Ken gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"Good morning, on behalf of the late Richard S. Howard family, they would like to thank each and every individual that came to pay their respects. I will be directing each pew, to look at the body. Please no photos and videos, thank you." The usher said. Toni swallowed her saliva and she bit her bottom lip. The ushers started from the back, and Toni and Ken were the first ones to see their mentor, laying there, looking like he's peacefully sleeping.
"Goodbye, professor. Until we meet again." Toni said while her bottom lip quivered. Ken sighed and both he and Toni walked away hand in hand. They gave Mrs. Howard a hug, and all the children.
"Thank you for being a great student and one of my father's favorites. Bowie will never be the same." Lisa whispered in Ken's ear. He smiled and walked away.
"Thank you for being a great student and one of my father's favorites. Bowie will never be the same." Lisa said once again, in Toni's ear. They both left the church and sat in the car.
"God, I'm going to miss him." Toni cried. Ken rubbed her back, and sighed.
"I know honey, I know." Ken whispered.
I've been to over ten funerals in 2015, so I kinda know how funerals operate, in a way. Those are actual songs from a hymnal book. Apologies for any mistakes. But make sure you comment and vote.
