Ernestine Mecum, 87, of Derry, NH, died Saturday, September 1, 2007 in the Pleasant Valley Nursing Center in Derry. Mrs. Mecum was born in Holder, IL on September 10, 1919, a daughter of the late Stanley J. and Grace M. (Wonderlin) Yanney, and grew up in Heyworth, IL. She was a resident of Derry since 2002, formerly living in Chester, NH since 1985, and Salem, IL. She graduated from Heyworth High School in Heyworth and then the Brokaw School of Nursing in Bloomington, IL. She had been employed at the Salem Memorial Hospital in Salem, IL as a registered nurse for many years. She enjoyed reading, swimming and traveling with her family.
She is survived by two daughters, Judith A. Balk and her husband Dr. Mel Balk of Chester, and Nancy Gjerset and her husband Ronald of Tujunga, CA; one granddaughter, Carrie Webber of La Jolla, CA; one great-grandchild, Kelsey Webber of La Jolla, CA; and her niece, Rita Gibson of Bloomington, IL.
“Your mother is always with you…She’s the whisper of the leaves as you walk down the street; she’s the smell of bleach in your freshly washed clothes; she’s the cool hand on your brow when you’re sick. She lives inside your laughter and she is in every tear drop. She’s the place you came from, your first home. She loved you first & always will. Nothing on Earth can separate you – not time, not distance, not even death. She has always watched over you & protected you & always will.”
There are no calling hours. Following cremation, a memorial service will be held at a later date. The family requests memorial contributions to the Chester Public Library, 3 Chester St., Chester, NH 03036, or to the Chester Congregational-Baptist Church, PO Box 306, Chester, NH 03036. The Peabody Funeral Homes and Crematorium, 15 Birch St., Derry is handling the arrangements.