A moment of silence, please, for them and their families....
"Holiday accident in New Jersey kills Arlington man, his mother; Tree fell on car as they traveled to see relatives" by Erin Ailworth, Globe Staff | December 26, 2008
In a freak accident, Arlington resident Joel Baudouin and his 70-year-old mother, Marie Vernet, were killed when a tree fell across the front of their
Oh, those poor kids! It happened right in front of them!
Joël Baudouin and his mother, Marie Vernet, were minutes from their destination when the tree fell on the front of the car.
Several hours after the accident, Edouard Baudouin Jr., his wife, and two longtime friends stared at the painting, propped against a wall.
"There goes Christmas and so much for a happy New Year," Edouard Baudouin Jr. said quietly, eyes glassy, as he remembered his brother, the eldest of four siblings, and his mother, who friends liked to claim as their own...
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Edouard Baudouin Jr., meanwhile, struggled to digest the 3:30 a.m. phone call from his sister in California, who had gotten the news from another relative. "I really didn't want to believe it," the 33-year-old Dorchester man said. A few days ago, he had taken his mother on a shopping trip so Vernet could buy gifts for her grandchildren. And Edouard had lunch with Vernet on Christmas Eve.
"I never knew that was the last time I was going to see her," he said, adding that he didn't know how to break the news to his 86-year-old father in Somerville, who, though separated from Vernet, spoke to her almost everyday by phone. Nor did he know how he and his relatives were going to break the news to his nieces, who family said were always at their father's side, giving him hugs or fiddling with his hair or camera....
--more--"
That is why you should NEVER FEEL EMBARRASSED or ODD to SHOW AFFECTION and TELL PEOPLE YOU LOVE THEM!!!
I think of this often, especially after my friend has an argument and is angry at his kids; what if that is the last time you see them? Do you really want THEIR and YOUR LAST MEMORIES to be ones of ANGER and TENSION? Think of how you would feel, readers. I know I would feel terrible!! It would CRUSH ME!!!!
And here is more horror and sorrow!
"Bourne couple perishes in a Christmas Eve fire" by Michael Levenson, Globe Staff | December 26, 2008
BOURNE - Neighbors and relatives watched in horror on Christmas Eve as flames and smoke filled a ranch house here, killing an elderly couple just minutes after they placed a frantic call to police.
The couple's 13-year-old granddaughter watched from the street as firefighters broke down the door and raced inside, said Beverly Polisky, a neighbor. "She was screaming, 'Get them out! Get them out!' " Polisky said.
Good Lord, the TRAUMA!!!
Yesterday, neighbors grieved in front of the house, which was intact with a tarp covering a hole in the roof. A bouquet of flowers was set under a Christmas wreath hung on the front door.
Police tape was draped over the door of the Bourne home of Leo and Marion Gagnon, who died in a fire that horrified neighbors and relatives. (Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff)
Authorities did not release the couple's names, but neighbors identified them as Leo and Marion Gagnon. "They were very good people," said Rob Martinez, a neighbor and friend. "It's not a very good Christmas," he added, his voice trailing off....
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Neighbors said Leo Gagnon was a 77-year-old Air Force veteran and carpenter, well-known as a handyman, and his wife, Marion Gagnon, 74, baked cookies for neighborhood children and helped her husband run a dog-grooming business in the basement.
Leo Gagnon had cancer, Martinez said, and he and his wife would drive to Connecticut for treatments. On the way back, he said, they liked to stop at Foxwoods Casino. Leo Gagnon had built a clubhouse in his backyard, where his granddaughter liked to play, and he put a new roof on Beverly Polisky's house across the street.
"If I needed any help, I could go to Leo," Beverly Polisky said. "He was an excellent carpenter," said Martinez, who helped Leo Gagnon on several roofing jobs.
The couple was alone at home when the fire broke out about 9:30 p.m. in the basement. Three minutes after receiving a 911 call from the house, firefighters arrived. The street began filling with neighbors, and the Gagnons' granddaughter and son, who also live in Bourne, showed up as well.
"I really feel bad for [the granddaughter]," said Alyxis Polisky, 13, Beverly's granddaughter and a friend of the couple's granddaughter. "She was so attached to her grandmother."
Firefighters broke down the door, and were hit with thick smoke and searing heat, said Joseph Carrara, Bourne's deputy fire chief. "They couldn't see their hands in front of them," Carrara said. After pushing their way inside, they found Marion Gagnon on the first floor and her husband in the basement. It was the worst possible outcome for those awaiting news.
"It's awful," said Tara Riordan, a neighbor. "I heard someone screaming."
Can you hear my sobs?
