Obituary for Someone Else

A few years ago, Pastor Alan Newton wrote this tongue in cheek obituary for one of the most valuable members of his congregation, “Someone Else.” This is appropriately fitting, not only for churches, but also communities, schools, businesses, civic organizations and families:

Dear Friends,

I know all of you were saddened to learn this week of the death of one our church’s most valuable members – Someone Else. Someone’s passing created a vacancy that will be difficult to fill. Else has been with us for many years, and for every one of those years Someone did far more than the normal person’s share of the work.

Whenever leadership was mentioned, this wonderful person was looked to for inspiration as well as results. Someone Else can work with that group. Whenever there was a job to do, a class to teach, or a meeting to attend, one name was on everyone’s lips, “Let Someone Else do it.”

It was common knowledge that Someone Else was among the largest contributors to the church. Whenever there was a financial need, everyone just assumed that Someone Else would make up the difference.

Someone Else was a wonderful person, sometimes appearing super-human, but a person can only do so much. Were the truth known, everyone expected too much of Someone Else. Now Someone Else is gone. We wonder what we are going to do.

Someone Else left a wonderful example to follow, but who is going to follow it? Who is going to do the things that Someone Else did? Who is going to respond to the call to serve and help? Remember, we can’t depend on Someone Else anymore.