A New Facebook Friend

In 1957 I was asked to be a candlelighter in my Aunt Rita's wedding. I remember being thrilled that she'd found a job for me. I was worried because, at seven years old, I was beyond the age of a flower girl and that was before Martha Stewart invited junior bridesmaids. I was so happy I would be a part of her wedding when she married Uncle Ed.

I wanted to be a part of anything that involved Rita. She was one of those people who could have been written up in Reader's Digest's "Most Unforgettable Character." She was lots of fun, the life of the party, and always had a twinkle in her eye. She made everything an adventure...so I figured this wedding would be, too.

In my memory, there were thousands of candles and, as you can see from the picture above, there were hurricane covers on the candles on the pew markers that had to be removed, candle lit, and then replaced. I was so afraid of dropping and shattering the glass, and out of the corner of my eye I could see that my fellow candlelighter, who was eleven and much taller and faster, was way ahead of me. And I remember playing with her when I would go to church with my grandmother and always thought her name was Karen.

A few weeks ago I received a message on facebook asking if I was related to Rita. The woman had seen my picture and thought I resembled my aunt, and because Rita and I had the same maiden name, she thought there might be a connection. I've never heard or thought that I looked like my adored aunt, so I was thrilled. She explained that she was Uncle Ed's neice. After exchanging a few emails, we discovered we were both candlelighters in their wedding! She was totally surprised when I told her I had a picture of us in action. The pictures above were in with lots of others from my grandmother that I somehow inherited.

We lost Rita years ago from breast cancer. She was so young and full of life it's hard to understand. But I have such fond memories of her. Thank you, Cheryl Kincaid, for prompting me to pull out these photos and remember a beloved aunt. It's just one more great Facebook connection with a story!