Please Join Us October 21st for the  

Sponsored by Gately Funeral Home, the event will be hosted by Absolutely Fabulous owner, Lori Muse. The event includes free and plentiful hors d'oeuvres and The Sangria Salute, the special libation of the evening. The Sangria Salute will be available for a donation in tribute to our Veterans and active service men and women. Other bar drinks, beer, and wine will be available, along with the usual bar menu.

Beginning at 5:30 pm, the event will run through 9:30 pm at the Absolutely Fabulous Restaurant, located at 454 Main Street in Melrose. Ryan McLane, Veterans' Agent in Melrose will be there, along with other town officials, friends, and family! All are invited to visit the guys from Gately Funeral Home who will be doing their best in their role as "mixologists" for the evening.

Lori Muse said, "We are happy to help out again this year. We have a special place in our hearts for Veterans - we have many Vets in our family and we have always reached out to help whenever we can."

Absolutely Fabulous is donating the appetizer spread and the money collected from the sale of the Sangria Salute drinks. John Gately said, "Lori is so generous, opening her restaurant for a number of local charities and their fundraising efforts. The spread she puts out is absolutely fabulous and is really the highlight of the evening! In addition, there will also be door prizes of items donated by local businesses."

Last year the event raised $3,000, and this year the challenge is to do even better. John predicted, "This year we're going to outdo ourselves and all of the money raised will be donated to the Melrose Veterans' Fund. The public is invited to help us help the Melrose Veterans' Fund. Please come out and join in the fun!"

For more information about attending the event or donating a door prize or cash, please call John Gately at 781-665-1949.

Time to De-Clutter Your
Closets for a Good Cause:

Coat Collection Begins  

December through January  

As the season changes from summer to autumn to winter, closets everywhere are appraised to remove the unworn and unwanted to make room for the new or the next season's required wardrobe.

John Gately urges us all to think about which of our gently-worn coats can be better utilized by those less fortunate than ourselves.  

"We are glad to do our part to help the less fortunate in our community by collecting coats again this winter" said John Gately. "This is the fifth year we have spearheaded this event. We hope to do even better than last year when we collected 300-plus coats for men, women, and children, which were distributed among local shelters in the area."

Beginning in December those wishing to donate can bring their gently-used coats to Gately Funeral Home at 79 West Foster Street in Melrose. The coat collection will continue through the end of January 2015.    

John Gately said, "We will have a collection box in the lobby of our Melrose funeral home for all donations of clean coats. Each year we are amazed by the generosity of those in Melrose and surrounding towns who help us to make our Coat Collection a success. It truly is a win-win situation. People tell me they feel wonderful that they can help others in need while cleaning out their closets of no longer wanted coats."

John added. "The almanacs are predicting another severe winter. But, whatever the weather, we are confident that many individuals and families will be thankful for the warmth of a coat just when it is needed the most."   

Frequently Asked Questions

"I recently lost someone very close to me and I confess that I was not prepared for the grief I am experiencing.
Why won't this awful feeling of loss go away?"

Grief is a process, one that is full of new challenges. Grief involves suffering, surprises, surrender, survival, and struggle. Grief is an emotional response to a significant loss.  

To experience grief is to acknowledge that you have loved someone, and now that person is gone. Because we don't fully understand grief, its intensity often comes as a surprise. We are confused by the shear array of emotions - numbness, shock, disbelief, anxiety, restlessness, anger, guilt, and more - that confront us.

Even when the numbness wears off, there is difficulty in accepting the loss. And then there is the anxiety over how we are to go one without our loved one.  We question how we will be able to survive. Grief is difficult and involves a struggle to come to terms with the situation.  

Bill speaks from experience, having lost his wife, a young woman in her thirties, to a heart attack, leaving a husband and two sons, age nine and seven. Today Bill is a grief counselor, author, TV host, and speaker.  We have excerpted his words here to help answer your question.

If you or anyone you know is suffering the loss of someone dear to them, please call us at 781-665-1949 and we will send a copy of My Careletter, featuring the article by Dr. Bill Webster. It is a helpful resource for all experiencing grief.