[Oe List ...] Fred Buss's Memorial

Tue Aug 2 18:57:05 EDT 2011

Herman, Terry and Jim,

With abundant thanks for your care in making available to all of us, the
gift of vicarious participation in this celebration of yet another
completed life of our OE family, one Leroy Fredrick Buss.  Joe and I
deeply appreciated all of what Herman sent and look forward to connecting
to the link when the video is uploaded.  I'm trusting you will let us
know when the latter is ready for viewing.

Grace and peace,

Marilyn

Dr. Marilyn R. Crocker
123 Sanborn Road
West Newfield, ME 04095

On Tue, 2 Aug 2011 17:35:54 -0500 Terry Bergdall <bergdall2 at gmail.com>
writes:
Video footage was taken during the service by Herman Greene and Jim
Troxel. ICA-USA hopes to soon have a link on our website whereby people
can download it if they so wish. The eulogy and reflections by Kaze
Gadway, Lindsey Buss, Paul Schrijnen, and Don Warren are all very fitting
ways to remember Fred. Terry

2011/8/2 Isobel and Jim Bishop <isobeljimbish at optusnet.com.au>

Dear Herman,
We appreciate so much your sending this tribute to Fred.
I do feel as if I was present. 
In Australia we remember Fred as giving himself wholeheartedly to us -and
to the people he encountered- during his year he spent amongst us. 1968.

Sincerely,
 Isobel BIshop.

On 03/08/2011, at 12:57 AM, Herman Greene wrote:

We held a moving memorial to Fred in the Kemper Building (which I
understand is now simply called “4750” by the locals) on Saturday.

Joe Thomas did most of the planning for the service with Paul Schrijnen
providing significant input. Both Joe and Paul were very caring to Fred,
Lindsey and Sarah throughout this final period. Lindsey has a wonderful
wife, Dr. Betina Franschini, a pediatrician. I think the service meant
more to Lindsey and Betina than any other people present.

The memorial was held on the first floor in a large room adjacent to the
entrance called the Martin Luther King, Jr. Room. How appropriate since
Fred was very involved in the civil rights movement and was even jailed
once with Dr. King in Albany, GA, in 1962. 

I didn’t count the number of people present, but it was around 50. I will
send a copy of the service in a separate email as I know it will be held
up for approval because of the message size limitations on this
listserve. 

Fred’s history goes very deep in the life of ICA. (At many levels it will
always be the Order or EI for me, but I have come to understand the
evolution that has occurred and our place in history now goes forward as
ICA. I learned so much more about this history last weekend.) He joined
the Christian Faith and Life Community at the University of Texas in
Austin in 1956. (I believe this is the right year.) His roommate in the
community was Don Warren. Don Warren’s wife was part of the women’s
branch of the Community and both Don and his wife were among original six
families that came to Evanston in 1962 to become the Ecumenical Institute
of Chicago. 

Don was the lead liturgist at the memorial service. He also gave an
unexpected, extensive eulogy at the end of the service as he was not
listed on the order of service to do a eulogy. Other eulogies were given
by Kaze Gadway (I learned that the name Kaze was how children in some
country in which she served pronounced Kay Hayes), Lindsey Buss and Paul
Schrijnen. Bettina said a Buddhist prayer on behalf of Meta Karuna
(formerly Elizabeth Buss and presently a Buddhist nun). Charles Hahn was
the other lead liturgist.

They were surrounded by a could of witnesses including Doris Hahn,
Patrick Moriarity, Marsha Hahn, Jim and Karen Troxell, Charles Lingo,
Joyce Townley, Laura Spencer, Terry and Pam Bergdall, Frank Knutson
(formerly Bob Knutson), Paul Noah, Marge and Paula Philbrook, Sally
Fenton, Carol Pierce, Dick Alton, distinguished friends of Lindsey, Karen
Sims, Roy Stansbury and many others. (Terry has the complete list.)

We brought our Order memory into the service without repeating our Order
liturgies.

Following the service, we went to the Guild Suite on the sixth floor. We
sat in a circle and told stories of Fred. Apparently Fred was better than
anyone at doing the sex section of the Missional Family course. Lindsey
inquired whether he should leave the room while this was being discussed.
Paul recounted that Fred’s frequent greeting when he was in Australia
around 1968 was “Are you keeping despair at bay?” I reported that he
advised priors of religious houses when giving their reports in Chicago
should imagine themselves as German commanders giving reports of progress
on the western front during the last days of World War II. 

Following the conversation we had au d’oeuvres and fellowship.

Many of us then went to Fifth City to spread Fred’s ashes on the
playground behind the Fifth City Pre-School (the hanger). When the
pre-school began in Fifth City, EI obtained a grant for playground
equipment. Fred found rocket ship/slide he wanted for the playground. He
insisted that the rocket ship be part of the equipment, was overruled at
least twice, he agreed to let it go, and then put it in the budget
anyway. Allegedly Fred said, “Lincoln has his memorial, Grant has his
tomb, and I have my rocket ship.” Now Fred rests under it. It is still
part of the Fifth City Preschool. (Fred had two pictures on his wall at
his death. One was of the rocket ship. Kaze Gadway wrote Zoom, Zoom
Astronaut in honor of the slide.)

While in Fifth City we encountered Ray Fox, the son of Lilly and Ray Fox,
now 50 and just back from serving in Iraq. How wonderful it was to talk
with him. He was pleased also.

The Iron Man still stands. The Program Center stands . . . empty and
abandoned. Many of the buildings we knew have been cleared and there are
vacant lots now—with grass. Fifth City is less tense, or so it seemed. It
abides. 341 Trumbull has been tuck pointed and is ready to stand for
another 100 years. The Bethany Brethren Hospital occupies the ground of
the EI campus.

On a personal note, I went to this memorial because Fred and Al/Charles
Lingo sustained me more than any other people during my years on the
Westside in Chicago. I wasn’t very aware of Fred’s flaws. He was one of
my heroes. 

He embodied the risen man to me--the best of EI for he brought life,
abundant life to others. He was that part of Christ who was the Lord of
the Dance—and we did sing this during his memorial.

Lindsey was asked late in the afternoon how he was feeling. He paused and
said, “Wonderful.”

Betina and Lindsey both were able to understand in a new way the part of
Lindsey’s life and our lives that is sometimes so hard to tell to others.
The Spirit lives.

Herman

_____________________________________________
Herman Greene
2516 Winningham Drive
Chapel Hill, NC 27516
919-929-4116 (h)
919-624-0579 (c)
919-942-4358 (f)
Skype: hgreene-nc
hfgreene at mindspring.com 

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