Mr. Devereaux Jarrett Claiborne

Our Dads were truly the greatest generation. There sacrifices paved the way for the bountiful life we have now. So I thought it would be the most appropriate to write a thank you note.
Dear Clay; I"ll always remember and never forget a life time full of happy memories. Your garage stocked with tools and lots of things for DeeDee and I to get into. Always a dog at your side, a motor scooter and a camper waiting to go on a new adventure. All the most wonderful chilhood memories I never want to forget. My heart is broken, again. So Dear Clay, I cannot pick up the phone and dial Hunter 37489 to say thank you, but I can visit my memories anytime and always know the ones we love the most are always close to us. So until we meet again Thank you Clay, All my Love Barbara

Our Dads were truly the greatest generation. There sacrifices paved the way for the bountiful life we have now. So I thought it would be the most appropriate to write a thank you note.
Dear Clay; I"ll always remember and never forget a life time full of happy memories. Your garage stocked with tools and lots of things for DeeDee and I to get into. Always a dog at your side, a motor scooter and a camper waiting to go on a new adventure. All the most wonderful chilhood memories I never want to forget. My heart is broken, again. So Dear Clay, I cannot pick up the phone and dial Hunter 37489 to say thank you, but I can visit my memories anytime and always know the ones we love the most are always close to us. So... READ MORE →

Clay was a dear, sweet man. Whenever I would phone he would say to me, well how are ya, young lady? Clay was a gentle soul and always was so loving to our dogs. He would love to go into the kitchen and sneak another biscuit to either Mukah or Kumah and they would always recognize a loving soul and go to him immediately without the slightest bit of fear.
When Ken and I and Connie and Clay would have lunch at our favorite buffet restaurant I would chuckle to see him sneak all the foods that Connie and I knew weren't the best for him but which he so thoroughly enjoyed. The four of us had such a wonderful time at those luncheons.

When I made a beaded hat band for his Western hat I was so grateful for his thanks and the sincere pleasure that he felt because I had made something by hand just for him.
He always made me feel part of his family and always gave me a big and warm hug whenever Ken and I came to visit.

We will all miss him terribly.
Rest in Peace, Clay. We all love you.
Lenore and Ken Doler

Clay was a dear, sweet man. Whenever I would phone he would say to me, well how are ya, young lady? Clay was a gentle soul and always was so loving to our dogs. He would love to go into the kitchen and sneak another biscuit to either Mukah or Kumah and they would always recognize a loving soul and go to him immediately without the slightest bit of fear.
When Ken and I and Connie and Clay would have lunch at our favorite buffet restaurant I would chuckle to see him sneak all the foods that Connie and I knew weren't the best for him but which he so thoroughly enjoyed. The four of us had such a wonderful time at those luncheons.

When I made a beaded hat band for his Western hat I was so grateful for his thanks and the sincere pleasure that he felt... READ MORE →

Me: I ready, you ready. Let’s go…
Me: Alright! Grandpa promised he would live 100 years. He was born January 2, 1919. I will talk today as if the date is January 2, 2019. “Happy birthday!!! Grandpa.” Hand over the banana peel and no one gets hurt.
Grandpa: I got one foot on a banana peel, the other foot in the grave.
Me: We gather here today to celebrate the life of Devereaux Jarrett Claiborne. He is my grandpa. I got a sea story for him.
Grandpa: Tell me a sea story.
Me: This is no ordinary sea story involving a lost treasure or giant white whale. I want you all to imagine a man sleeping peacefully in his bed. In about a minute he will dream of something no man has dreamed of before. In his dream at about 59 seconds left, there is a big audience patiently sitting in front him. He is on stage with a small set of notecards in his hands. He has discovered a new scientific formula that describes the nature of the universe. He is very excited to share the formula with everyone.
Man in dream: Excuse me ladies and gentleman, may I have your attention.
Me: The audience slowly quieted down and began to watch and listen in anticipation.
55 seconds remain.
Man in dream: As a scientist of planet earth I have discovered a new formula.
Me: This formula is like no other. Remember the Pythagreom formula. Recall the beauty of Euler’s formula. Don’t forget Einstein’s formula.
50 seconds remain.
Me: These are formulas of math and physics. There are many other formulas in economics, engineering, chemistry and so on.
Man in dream: The formula I have discovered involves no math or language symbolism.
45 seconds remain.
Man in dream: There is no need to fear for the non-math majors and those with language barriers.
Me: You might be thinking how can there be a single formula that describes the nature of the universe and yet can’t be symbolized.
40 seconds remain.
Man in dream: I will be the first to admit that the formula will not solve all your problems.
Me: Focus on the man again that is dreaming in the bed. The man still rests peacefully. Something has changed in the room. A visitor is watching over him.
35 seconds remain.
Me: The visitor is waiting patiently for the man’s awakening. The man isn’t expecting any visitors. The visitor met the man once before. This time the visitor has a gift to offer the sleeping man. The visitor understands that the man might not accept the gift.
30 seconds remain.
Me: In the meantime the man in the dream has flipped to his final notecard. Written at the top of the card in English is, “The formula of the universe.” The man took a deep breath and starred back at the audience. The man signaled to the stage operator to dim the lights and start the music. A screen came down and a projector shined a copy of the man’s final notecard on the screen.
25 seconds remain.
Me: The audience stood up. Everyone clapped in admiration at what was shining on the screen. Some people cried, others laughed, and the rest were silent. The man had moved off the stage, walked to the back of the room and quietly exited through the doors.
20 seconds remain.
Me: The man in the dream said,
Man in dream: My work here is done.
Me: The man in dream reached into his pocket to grab some money for a cab ride home. He looked down. There on the floor was what appeared to be a coin. The color of the coin was gold. He wondered if this could be a real gold coin.
15 seconds remain.
Me: Man in dream lifted the coin to his mouth. He bit the coin. The coin felt like metal but he was unsure whether it was real gold. He examined both sides of the coin closely.
10 seconds remain.
Me: Written on one side around the edge was the phrase, “Don’t take any wooden nickels.” On the other side is an impression of a figure. The man in dream pulled out a pocket magnifying glass to get a better look at the figure. Moving the magnifying glass back and forth he realized the figure was a woman.
5 seconds remain.
Me: The man in dream had seen this woman before. Back in the room with the man sleeping peacefully the visitor prepared the gift.
Man in dream: Who was this woman?
Me: The man in dream slipped the gold coin into his front shirt pocket walked toward the cab terminal. He signaled for a cab. A cab slowed down and the man got in. About 100 yards down the road he finally realized who the woman was.
Man in dream: I remember, I remember, I remember.
0 seconds remain.
Me: The man sleeping woke up and jumped out of bed. Not even noticing the visitor he ran down the hallway and out the front door with only an undershirt and boxer shorts on. He yelled at the top of his lungs,
Man awake: I remember!!!
Me: The visitor grabbed the gift walked down the hallway and out to greet the man awake. The man awake only responded,
Man awake: I remember!!! This is wonderful.
Visitor: Put out your hand. I have a gift for you.
Me: The man awake put out his right hand palm up. The visitor reached into his pocket pulled out the gift and placed it firmly in the man’s right hand. Lying in the palm of the man’s right hand is a freshly wrapped Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup. The visitor asked,
Visitor: So what was it that you remembered?
Man awake: Oh nothing just this old saying I used to quote a lot.
Me: The visitor asked,
Visitor: What is this saying?
Me: The man awake said,
Man awake: Well you might laugh a little.
Me: The visitor said,
Visitor: Try me. Wait a second…
Me: The man awake said,
Man awake: Sorry, times up. I was counting down in my sleep.
Me: The visitor responded in astonishment,
Visitor: Hand over the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup and no one gets hurt.

Me: I ready, you ready. Let’s go…
Me: Alright! Grandpa promised he would live 100 years. He was born January 2, 1919. I will talk today as if the date is January 2, 2019. “Happy birthday!!! Grandpa.” Hand over the banana peel and no one gets hurt.
Grandpa: I got one foot on a banana peel, the other foot in the grave.
Me: We gather here today to celebrate the life of Devereaux Jarrett Claiborne. He is my grandpa. I got a sea story for him.
Grandpa: Tell me a sea story.
Me: This is no ordinary sea story involving a lost treasure or giant white whale. I want you all to imagine a man sleeping peacefully in his bed. In about a minute he will dream of something no man has dreamed of before. In his... READ MORE →

It is so wonderful that my dad has peacefully left this world with a loving legacy. He inspired all of us with his compassion, honesty, integrity, and humor. He loved to laugh, and appreciated a funny story. When I was young, I would ride on the back of his motorcycle with our funny looking dog, Dinky in the basket. He would always rig up some type of monstrosity in our yard that apparently served as something useful for him. I thought he was joking with me one day when he was showing me how to open the gate. You stand on a metal contraption which lifts up the gate, and then you proceed with 5 more things to do, and by the way don't forget to hold the gate door or it will come off the hinge in a wind. He was one of a kind- very artistic, as well as mechanically, and electrically talented.
He was loved by all of us. He had a heart of gold; a truly unique man with a limitless capacity to share his time, his material possessions, and most importantly his love. The world would truly be a better place if we had more Clays in the world that deeply love their country, and their family. Dad lived by one of his motto's, "I think I am going to make it." And yes he did make it to 92.
Farewell Dad. You will always be in my heart. Your baby, Deirdra (DeeDee).

It is so wonderful that my dad has peacefully left this world with a loving legacy. He inspired all of us with his compassion, honesty, integrity, and humor. He loved to laugh, and appreciated a funny story. When I was young, I would ride on the back of his motorcycle with our funny looking dog, Dinky in the basket. He would always rig up some type of monstrosity in our yard that apparently served as something useful for him. I thought he was joking with me one day when he was showing me how to open the gate. You stand on a metal contraption which lifts up the gate, and then you proceed with 5 more things to do, and by the way don't forget to hold the gate door or it will come off the hinge in a wind. He was one of a kind- very artistic, as well... READ MORE →

Hi. For those who don't know me, I'm Jordan one of the five grandchildren of my grandpa Devereaux Claiborne. Upon meeting this man, you knew by my grandpa's handshake he would be one of the strongest people you would know. Just by the nicknames my grandpa has, I know he has played a tremendous role in shaping all of us. He was known by DJ, Clay, Dev, Tex, Mr. C. Chief, Dad, and Grandpa. I knew him as Gramps. Gramps played the grandpa role like the best of them. There was nothing in his eyes that his grandchildren could do wrong. He was proud of everything we did. To him, we are just perfect little creatures. My earliest memory of Gramps is him teaching me how to ride a training-wheel bicycle up and down Acacia St. in Oxnard. Now you can find me on the weekends doing 50 mile rides anywhere there is a challenging mountain to climb. And when I was young, I was never upset when I got sick because that meant I was going to Grandma and Grandpa's. Gramps would always doctor me up with mentholatum under my nose, a warm towel on my head, and a glass of ginger ale. I don't think there was anything he couldn't fix; man or machine. Gramps watched me in my first soccer games. I spent half my first season picking grass, until Gramps came to me with a proposition. He said he would pay me a dollar for every goal I would score. Soon enough I was scoring enough goals, I didn't know what to do with all the money. Incentives right? Gramps always had a war story and tales of wanderlust to fill your imagination. I think these stories play a direct roll in why I have lived in seven different cities, a couple states, and three countries over the last four years. Throughout the years we all got plenty of atta boys and of course ate our fair share of Reeses Pieces. Jared, Jessica, and I all graduated from university and I'm sure the twins Christa and Nicole will grow up to be Rhode Scholars. Gramps, I'm going to miss eating chow with you and exchanging travel stories. You are my hero and I'm going to really miss you. Gramps would never let another person leave without saying. "Don't take any wooden nickels."

Hi. For those who don't know me, I'm Jordan one of the five grandchildren of my grandpa Devereaux Claiborne. Upon meeting this man, you knew by my grandpa's handshake he would be one of the strongest people you would know. Just by the nicknames my grandpa has, I know he has played a tremendous role in shaping all of us. He was known by DJ, Clay, Dev, Tex, Mr. C. Chief, Dad, and Grandpa. I knew him as Gramps. Gramps played the grandpa role like the best of them. There was nothing in his eyes that his grandchildren could do wrong. He was proud of everything we did. To him, we are just perfect little creatures. My earliest memory of Gramps is him teaching me how to ride a training-wheel bicycle up and down Acacia St. in Oxnard. Now you can find me on the weekends doing 50 mile rides... READ MORE →