In Memoriam - Jill O'Grady 1949-2000

Memorial altar

(click any card on the table to see detail)

Longtime friend Betty Porter spent many hours during the summer working on a memorial altar that would be her contribution to a faculty exhibition at the University of Redlands in the fall. Most of the table top is covered with "Jill prayers." These were inspired by Mexican oraciones, each about the size of a playing card with a color image and a saying or prayer on each side. Betty scanned every photo of Jill with friends, animals and family that she could lay her hands on (including childhood shots and several Halloween costumes) and used Photoshop to juxtapose images, apply filters and add effects. The effect is very moving. Even the second time that I saw these, I couldn't stop looking at them, one after the other. No way to hold back the tears (fortunately, the cards are wrapped in plastic). On the front every photo has an appropriate Irish toast (with translation). On the back is either an excerpt from the obituary or a prayer in Spanish, along with a clock with the face of the toddler Jill, with the time set to various hours in the "day of life." Each card fits in a small plastic zip-loc bag, which also encloses a few other items: a small cross, a tiny fabric bag, perhaps a seed or bean, and some mylar confetti in the shape of animals.

Memorial tree