BOB HOPE - May 29, 1903 - July 27, 2003
At 5:50 am this morning July 30, 2003, the Familiar words "Do-Lor-Iss, we're late" echoed from the downstairs foyer of the Hope residence. The voice was Linda Hope's mimicking the words and the inflections so frequently used by her father, Bob Hope.
Dolores entered the waiting limousine. Her sister, Mildred, reached out and held her hand. The motorcade exited the driveway, turned left and slowly moved down the street on which Bob and Dolores had traveled for 65 years. Several blocks away the caravan turned left and entered the parking area behind St. Charles Borromeo Church in North Hollywood.
The altar of the small chapel on the east side of the church was banked with greenery enhanced with white flowers - roses, cyclamen and hydrangeas, carefully arranged by a dear and loving friend, creating a garden to shadow the casket draped with an American flag.
Bob Hope's immediate family, Dolores, daughter Linda, son Tony and his wife Paula, son Kelly and grandchildren Andrew Lande, Zach Hope and Miranda Hope-Smith with her husband Andrew, some close friends, staff, doctors and recent caregivers, entered the pews to pay their last respects.
Monsignor Thomas Kiefer and Father Robert Gallagher and Father Jason officiated at the simple funeral mass. Organ music of sacred hymns played by Paul Salamunovich filled the chapel. Son Kelly gave the first reading, grandson Zach the second. Tony Hope presented a loving tribute to his dad and expressed warm appreciation from the family to those in attendance.
In moments of silence, in the church and on the way to the cemetery, each individual gave their private eulogy for a remarkable man who lead an extaordinary life. A man they admired and loved.
At 7:00 am the motorcade taveled through neighborhoods of North Hollywood, Van Nuys, North Hills, and Panorama City arriving at the San Fernando Mission Hills Cemetery at a temporary burial site. A grotto is being created near the San Fernando Mission as a final resting place for the beloved entertainer, patriot and humanitarian.
At the conclusion of the ceremony there was a standing ovation and applause filled the cemetery grounds. Bob Hope had taken his final bow and left the stage. He was taking a new road, but his presence remains.
