Edna Klarman Dolan 1927 – 2012

Edna Klarman Dolan Santa Monica Beach 2011

It’s with heavy hearts that we announce the death of our mother, Edna Klarman Dolan. After a short, intense bout with cancer, our mother died late Monday night in a room filled with peace, light and love.

Our mother was a wife of 62 years, a mother to 8 children, a grandmother to 11, a sister to 5, an aunt to dozens and a friend to many. She was a real New Englander, a Connecticut Yankee, born to a generation that worked hard, complained little and accomplished much. She was an avid gardener, a wonderful cook and entertainer and a stylish dresser. She loved Milky Ways, the Yankees and Doc Martin. She preferred white over any color, loved lilies-of -the valley and thought pewter was always in vogue. She was with it, bossy and opinionated. She was a beach go-er and  a party planner. But more than anything, our mother was a do-er.

Some people are thinkers or dreamers. Some thrive as ponderers or dwellers. But our mother got stuff done, all day long for 85 years. She didn’t change the world but she changed her world. She was the sum of a million little actions and a maybe a dozen big actions that constituted a life.

In that spirit, we ask you to honor our mother by doing something, maybe even one of the activities she loved: Go for a swim. Plant a rose bush. Say a Hail, Mary. Hang a wreath on your front door. Use linen napkins everyday. Dry some hydrangeas. Buy strawberries at the farmers’ market. Make your bed. Drop off a meal. Pull some weeds. Polish your silver. Pick up a little something at Saks. Wear good shoes. Do a load of laundry. Empty the dishwasher. Set the table. Make dinner. Volunteer at your local botanical garden. Docent. Put down a coaster first. Eat a Pinkberry. Light a candle at St. Patrick’s. Make some hot chocolate. Iron your shirts. Mail a real birthday card. Monogram your towels. Mash some potatoes. Walk your dog. Bring custard to a sick friend. Swap your homemade blueberry muffins for cutting privileges in your neighbor’s garden. Master the art of French cooking. Pack a picnic. Paint a room. Paint a baseboard. Decorate your mantle. Learn to make béchamel. Prepare a cheese platter. Go skiing. Pour some iced tea. Take an elderly friend to church. Plan for the next holiday. Send a gift. Arrange a centerpiece. Call your daughter. Call your sisters. And remember, you can never go wrong with a Honeybaked Ham.

Thank you, Mom. We are your daughters.

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers,

Julie, Liz, Sheila, Monica and  Lian