Salma Ahmed

Prof. Bernie

COMS 103

23 April 2020

Special Occasion Speech: Grandma’s Funeral

Hello, and welcome. My name is Salma and I am Rose’s youngest granddaughter. I want to

thank you all for coming here on this difficult day. Your attendance here speaks volumes about

the impact that this wonderful woman had on all of us. Some of you knew her as Mom, Great

Grandma, GG, or simply as Rose. To me and her 7 other grandchildren, she was simply

Grandma, and to all of us, she was a pretty amazing lady. To highlight this, I reached out to my

cousins and asked them a pretty simple and straightforward question: “What are the 3 words that

you would use to describe Grandma?” Their responses, while simple, begin to paint a detailed

portrait of the woman we all knew and loved. A few of the words that they all had in common

were; caring, loving, selfless, compassionate, and generous. Grandma was unbelievably

compassionate. Her heart and her generosity knew no bounds. Her door was always open -

literally. She rarely locked it. You could just walk in and people often did. Neighbors, friends,

immediate family and relatives, all knew they had a place to stay for a few minutes, a few hours

or for a few days, to enjoy her hospitality and her generosity. The door was always open and the

food was always plentiful.

Moreover, she donated much of her time to others. Knitting, crocheting, and working on her

award-winning liquid embroidery that she loved to do; the items she made and were often

donated to organizations, particularly animal shelters, to support a charitable cause. She loved to

give her time and her focus to others and was always willing to give just a little bit more. She
was truly selfless. I particularly remember that she always made sure to send us her notes of

love. At every birthday, every Christmas and each Valentine’s Day, Grandma made sure we

received a note of her love. It was something that we all looked forward to and got excited about.

Especially those home-made valentine cards. Games were part of her life and many of those

same games are now part of our lives. When the deck of cards, the bag of dice, the game board

came out, or the call went out for a water fight, or a game of hide and seek, the outside world

melted away. We became focused in the world of the game and in our grandmother who made it

all possible. Another great memory was all of the candies that were always plentiful. There were

scotch mints, peanuts, humbugs, chicken bones, ju jubs, and jelly beans. It was like entering our

very own Willy Wonka Candy Factory. She was fun.

Now some of you would say that Grandmas was strong. Other might refer to her as determined.

Some may even go as far as “Stubborn”. But if you asked her, she would say, “I am not

stubborn, I am Independent!” And independent she was. If she had a viewpoint and a perspective

on a given topic, nothing you could do or say would alter that. She would budge but only when

she was good and ready, and on her terms. 

But in many respects she had to be independent. Raising her children after Grandpa Joe’s early

passing forced her into a position where she had to fight for what she needed. And fight she did.

She had to look out for the interests of her children. So we will give her a pass on this one. She

was independent. She was perfect. Perfect in every respect. Her laugh, her smile, her big kisses,

and her hugs. They were perfect. And she was the perfect grandmother. And we are all just a

little bit closer to perfection to have had her in our lives. I love you Grandma. I’ll miss you.

Love, your favorite granddaughter, Salma