Warren W. Whitehouse
Nardin Park United Methodist Church
September 1, 2009
Eleven o'clock am
Rev. Dr. Dale Miller, Pastor
Rev. Susan Youmans, Pastor
Mel Rookus, Organist
I am standing on the sea shore,
A ship sails in the morning breeze and starts for the ocean.
She is an object of beauty and I stand watching her
Till at last she fades on the horizon.
Someone at my side says: "She is gone."
Gone! Where! Gone from my sight - that is all.
She is as large in the masts, hull and spars as she was when I saw her.
The diminished size and total loss of sight is in me, not in her.
And just at the moment when someone says, "She is gone,"
Others are watching her coming and gladly shout: "There she comes."
That is dying- an horizon and the limit of our sight.
- Bishop Charles Henry Brent
Voluntary
Words of Grace
Jesus said, I am the resurrection and I am life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, yet shall they live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. I am Alpha and Omega, .the beginning and the end, the first and the last. I died, and behold I am alive forever. Because I live, you shall live also.
Greeting
We have gathered to worship God and to celebrate the life of Warren William Whitehouse. As we gather, we trust in the presence of God that walks with us in our grief and helps us in our time of need. Although we come in sorrow, we also give God thanks for the life and memories of Warren.
May God grant us grace, that in pain we may find comfort, that in sorrow we may experience hope, and that in death we may claim resurrection.
Prayer
We bring our burdened and grieving hearts to you, 0 God. We feel our loss overwhelming us, and we search our questioning minds to understand the mysteries of life and death. Warren was a precious part of our lives, and we feel we have lost part of ourselves in his death.
Give us understanding that relieves our aching hearts. Help us not to rush through this valley, but to walk with you and learn what it means to live and die in your sight. Teach us to trust in your grace in life and in death. Be especially with members of Warren's family. Clothe each with comfort, compassion, and love. May they sense your presence through our words and acts no matter how inadequate those may be. And now we trust the spirit of our loved one with you, 0 God, believing in your promise of eternal life. Amen.
Solo "Beautiful Isle of Somewhere" Claude Grant
Words of Grace
Romans 8
I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. We know that all things work together for good, for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Pastor: This is the Word of God for the People of God.
People: Thanks be to God.
Solo "Psalm 23" Christine Kavka
Words of Remembrance
Years ago Labor Day was observed on September 1 no matter what day of the week on which the date fell. It was on Labor Day, September 1,1944 that Helen Katherine Whitehouse went into labor and soon she and her husband, William Edward Whitehouse greeted their newest son, Warren William. He joined his older brother, Bob, as a member of a wonderful and loving family.
Childhood friend, Gary Middlekauff, wrote of their early days together:
“I fondly remember the early 50's as a much simpler time. We were lucky to have a whole block full of good kids who hung out together. And where did we "always" hang out? Warren's house! He had it all, thanks to great parents, and a great older brother. They had a big screened-in porch in back where we ate PB&J's, fixed by his mom, and played board games (Clue, Monopoly, and Baseball, probably handed down from Bob).
There was the swing over the sand pile where we built elaborate cities with all his cool metal cars. There was the basketball hoop on the garage with that big driveway in front. In winter, Warren's dad would always flood the empty lot next to them so we could play hockey, and we did, every day after school until dark.
We were all big collectors of pop bottles (2 cents each). That money went for 5 cent candy bars and chocolate malts at the nearby Beer and Wine store and Dairy Queen. Of course there was "Edgewater Amusement Park" where we spent many of our days making Christmas tree forts or shooting off fireworks! Not all kids are lucky enough to have a great childhood. Mine was made better because Warren was in it."
Warren attended Cass Tech and Redford High School. He went on to graduate from the University of Michigan and the University of Michigan Law School.
Growing up Warren learned the value of family as his parents kept in close contact with almost all of the family members, whether they were close or distant relatives. As it turned out there was this distant cousin by the name of Arnetta. Warren's mother's mother and Arnetta's father's mother were sisters. Warren and Arnetta knew each other when they were both younger, but then Arnetta and her family moved away for a few years. Eventually, they returned to Michigan and this young lady attracted the attention of young master Warren.
Warren, however, was painfully shy and he asked another family member to ask Arnetta if she would be interested in going bowling with him. She accepted. It wasn't until the third date that he held hands with her. At the end of the fifth date he informed Arnetta that he had gone to the U of M Law School library to see if it's legal for cousins to marry. If it was illegal he would have to stop seeing her. If it was legal - and it was - then it would be okay to continue seeing her. With that pronouncement he gave Arnetta a quick kiss on the cheek, got into his car and sped away.
Arnetta was left wondering whether she had experienced a marriage proposal or not. She had. They continued to see one another and even though Warren was a student he figured out how to financially enter into marriage. We heard that as a youngster he loved playing with metal cars. He fell in love with a real car, a Jaguar, and began saving money to buy one. After he fell in love with Arnetta he came to the conclusion that she was better than a Jaguar and they were married on July 1, 1967.
They became parents to Caryn and Justin, welcomed Tim into the family as Caryn's husband and their four daughters, Rebekkah, Rachel, Grace and Elizabeth. They also welcomed Jay's fiance, Kate, into the Whitehouse clan.
Warren was a physically active man, playing softball, touch football, ice skating, ice hockey, golf, jogging, bowling and sailing.
This energy carried on throughout his life taking hikes alone and with his family. The family took camping trips in a Ford Econoline Conversion Van. Many times the destination was with the Kucharski (silent "c")family to Tobermory in the Bruce Peninsula on the Georgian Bay in Canada.
They also traveled to Wilderness Park at Disney World, to Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rushmore, Arizona and some half of our fifty states. Whether they were on a hiking trail or seeing some geographic sight Warren always had to read every sign and plaque in front of him. He was also a neat freak who could not stand sand or dust or dirt in the van or tent.
One his favorite vacations was with Caryn and her family when he rented a house outside Disney World where he bought a multiple-day pass for everyone. Something we must understand, however, is that fact that Warren was thrifty, maybe even frugal. In order to get his full dollar's worth at Disney World the family had to be there when the park opened in the morning and they didn't leave until the parked closed late at night. To save money, each family member was equipped with homemade lunches and they took in their own drinks.
Warren was the best grandpa. He loved his granddaughters and played games with them, read books to them and never passed up on a chance to see them.
As a law student Warren began working in the legal department for Touche, Ross, Bailey and Smart, an accounting firm. In 1971 he partnered with Dale Watts as they began their own law firm. Watts and Whitehouse P.C. with their offices in Birmingham. In 1986 Warren struck out on his own, establishing the law firm of "Warren W. Whitehouse, P.C., working out of his own home, covering Trust and Estate work and Tax work for individuals and corporations.
Warren and Arnetta became members of the Nardin Park congregation in 1991. They immediately became members of the "Back Forty" Fellowship group. Warren served on the Finance Committee and the Memorials Committee, as well as being a member of the first "Discipleship" Bible study group.
Warren was an avid bowler, eventually raising his bowling average to 209. He loved sailing and was a very active member as a Captain of the American Sailing Institute. This teaching organization owns boats together and Warren was quite the sailor. He loved to sail the North Channel at the top of Lake Huron, but his eyes would sparkle when he talked about the time three couples rented a catamaran to sail the Caribbean. The rental came with a captain, but he was totally unnecessary. The rental captain got to sleep for a week while Warren and the rest of the crew were more up to the adventure of sailing the former pirate waters.
Warren possessed an analytical, logical, and methodical personality. When Caryn had saved her baby sitting money to buy a camera, it was Warren who poured over all of the consumer report to find the best evaluation and deals available. He then presented all of his research to Caryn and she had to make the decision.
Caryn always appreciated her dad's honesty and his ability to stand up for what is right. Jay was grateful that his father was such a moral and decent man.
Warren's brother, Bob, wrote these words to him:
“I have always admired and been extremely proud of you. This pride ranges from your going toUofM law school and setting up your own private successful law practice, to raising a truly family with a saint for a wife (great choice), two great children, along with four wonderful, loving grandchildren, which is a tribute to Netta as well as you. I have been proud of how decent, honest, sincere and reverent a man you became. You have truly led an exemplary life, one that any man would be proud to have led."
When we speak of Warren the name of Arnetta has to be mentioned in the same breath. Theirs is a love story whose depth has been so transparent over the years, but especially over these last seven months as Warren struggled with pancreatic cancer. To sit down at the computer each evening and read the Warren Wm Whitehouse's Journal daily epistles from Arnetta was to look into the souls of two genuine people who faced all of life together.
The last weeks of Warren's life were not easy for him or his family. Arnetta wrote on August 17, "He is in a channel halfway between Lake Cognizant and Lake Dementia and I'm finding the navigation very difficult. I'm counting heavily on God to be my lighthouse guiding the sailboat that signifies our marriage."
The front cover of our memorial service bulletin is a lighthouse. Warren navigated his life extremely well. There is much to celebrate, not simply his accomplishments, but also his qualities as a husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend. He engaged life to its fullest and we shall always be thankful for him. Thanks be to God for Warren Whitehouse.
Solo "Amazing Grace" Tony Camiletti
Words of Hope
Sailors know the terms "jetsam" and "flotsam." When a storm is coming, wise sailors throw out of their ships the jetsam, the stuff that is likely to weigh them down and make their ship more likely to take on water and sink. Smart sailors let go of jetsam when a storm is coming.
Flotsam is the stuff that is left over after a ship wreck. It may or may not be very pretty or neat or outwardly desirable. The saving grace of flotsam is that it floats and we can hold onto it to keep ourselves from drowning before we get to shore. Flotsam is what we can hold to after the storm has passed.
The question for us is, "What in our lives - spiritually, physically, emotionally - is jetsam and what is flotsam? What do we need to let go of and what do we need to hang on to?
I believe Warren was the kind of man who intuitively knew the jetsam of life. He threw out anything and everything that would prevent him from sailing the sea of life. He hung on to the values that mattered. He did this task so well, that we can truly appreciate and celebrate his life. Was he perfect? No, but he was faithful to who he was, to his family, to his friends, to his church, and to his God. For preserving the goodness of living Warren receives a captain's rating.
Now we come to the flotsam, the stuff left over after a ship wreck, and I'm pretty sure that pancreatic cancer is a ship wreck. The cancer was not pretty or neat or desirable. It was horrible. Unfortunately, disease strikes. It is not the will of God, but it is simply the by-product of basic principles of this world crashing painfully into our lives. Sometimes our bodies break down, playing no favorites in the process-
Warren knew this. What he discovered was with the flotsam of this experience there was something to hold on, something that prevented him from drowning in self-pity. Warren had the love of his family, his friends and his God. That love is still here, even after the storm of death has passed.
The book of Romans that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ, not even death. Warren's love for you and your love for him has not stopped. God's love for Warren has not stopped, but continues forever. Arnetta wanted to hold this memorial service on Warren's birthday because this day is truly another birthday for Warren, a birth into life eternal, the never-ending relationship with God and with us.
The idea of God loving us forever is an audacious claim, but in fact it's the bedrock of our faith. God's unconditional love for Warren is a seal upon our hearts and a promise that we claim for him and for us this day and every day.
At the top of our bulletin you have read the story about the ship. Today we could say, "He has left us." Instead, we can say, "He has arrived." Death is not the end of life, it is the beginning. It is the beginning of new life, a birth day into life eternal.
Today, there is grief felt by all of us. But along with our tears of sadness, we also have tears of joy - joy in the sure and certain hope of the Resurrection. In the Resurrection, the world of the finite becomes the glorious eternal, anxiety becomes peace, loss becomes hope. In the presence of Christ we find eternity, we find peace, and we find hope. Thanks be to God.
Prayer
0 God, Creator of all life, help us to understand death as a special part of life, trusting in your goodness and great love for every one of us. We feel now the pain of parting with one we love, but we rejoice that we were privileged to experience life with Warren. We entrust Warren to you in death, as in life you entrusted him to us. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ through whom you have offered to each of us your great gift of eternal life. Amen.
Commendation
A life we love is gone. Expectations held have vanished. Into the hands of God we commend the soul of Warren William Whitehouse. 0 God, through your grace that can do far more than we can think or imagine, fulfill in Warren your purpose that reaches beyond time and death. Receive him into the fullness of your kingdom and into the glorious company of the saints. Allow us to celebrate his birthday into life eternal. Amen.
The Lord's Prayer [in unison]
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Hymn No. 77 [standing] "How Great Thou Art"
Benediction
Go, knowing that God goes with you, helping you through the troubled waters of your soul. Go, knowing that nothing, not even death, can defeat God's strong love for Warren or for us. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Voluntary
COMMITTAL SERVICE
I CORINTHIANS 15
Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed. For this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put on immortality. Then the saying that is written will be fulfilled: "Death has been swallowed up in victory." "Where, 0 Death, is your victory? Where, 0 Death, is your sting?" But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
PSALM 16
Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices; my body also dwells secure. You, [Lord,] show me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy, in your right hands are pleasures forevermore.
PRAYER
0 God, you have ordered this wonderful world and know all things inearth and in heaven. Give us such faith that by day and by night, at all times and in all places, we may without fear commit ourselves and those dear to us to your never-failing love, in this life and in the life to come. Amen.
COMMITTAL
Almighty God, into your hands we commend Warren Whitehouse, in sure and certain hope of resurrection to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. This body we commit to its resting place, earth-to-earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Grant eternal life to Warren and let your perpetual light shine upon him.
PRAYER
God of grace and mercy, we praise you that through the death and resurrection of your Son, Jesus Christ, we are bom to a new and living hope. We thank you especially for Warren, for the gift of his life, and for your grace given to him. We pray that you will receive him into the arms of your mercy and into the blessed peace that passes our understanding.
By the power of your Holy Spirit, continue to reassure us that neither death nor life, nor things present, nor things to come will be able to separate us from your love that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Enable us so to live in Christ, that when we have fought the good fight, finished our race, and kept the faith, you will bestow upon us the crown of righteousness and heavenly reunion.
BENEDICTION
Now to the One who is able to keep you from falling, and to make you stand without blemish in the presence of God's glory with rejoicing, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority, before all time and now and forever.