Remember distant friends

by Gill
(New Zealand)

Recently (middle of June) I learnt that a penfriend from TN had died in February. Unknowingly, of course, I had sent her a letter the day she died, and another with stamps (which she passed on to a vet's group for fundraising)sometime later). At no time did her family bother to respond to my letters or even return them with 'deceased' written on them.

A mutual penfriend in the US wrote at the beginning of June and did get a reply informing her of our friend's death. The deceased was involved in a church choir and belonged to several other social groups as well and also had children and grandchildren, yet no-one thought (or could be bothered) to contact writers of letters which arrived after her death with a brief quick note or card.

So the point of this is to remind readers to leave instructions to relatives, friends and/or estate executors to contact friends in your address book and advise them of your passing. Someone will inform businesses, banks etc so what is so hard about contacting penfriends and e-pals?

SIGN UP: Retirement Insider