It was Christmas time in 1947, and Rae was their first child, and something was not right. Rae was only a few months old and she was throwing up and she would not stop crying. After several months, the doctors eventually determined that she was suffering from pressure building up in her brain due to excessive fluid. Hydrocephalous. They were in a college town, Ann Arbor, at the University of Michigan, but even so, the treatment of hydrocephalous at that time was limited. As a result, Rae’s brain was damaged. The doctors advised her parents that there was not much they could do for their little girl, and she needed special care. They arranged for Rae to be cared for in a children’s home in Rockford, Michigan.

When her father graduated from the University of Michigan in 1949, it was a difficult decision. By this time, Rae had been moved to a home in Coldwater, Michigan, and the doctors didn’t want Rae moved to Boston where dad’s new job was located. Mom was torn with the thought of leaving her child behind. When they moved from Boston to California, Rae remained in Michigan, eventually moving to a home in Gaylord, Michigan.

Rae could not walk, and her mental capacity was that of a 6- or 7-year-old. Her mom and dad had more children, and in their daily family prayers, they always remembered to ask God to bless their daughter and sister, Rae. She was blessed. On an occasion when dad visited her in Michigan, Rae told him that she always tried to be happy, because people do not like you when you are grumpy. Oh, that we could all remember that in our own lives. A picture of Rae was always on the dresser in mom and dad’s bedroom throughout mom and dad’s life. And now, that picture belongs to one of Rae’s sisters. One of her brothers keeps Rae’s baby quilt. Reminders of their sister that they were never able to meet.

In 1965, when she was 18 years old, she passed away. Mom cried. Dad cried. Younger sisters and brothers who had never met her would finally see her for the first time at her funeral. Mom and dad relied on their faith in God to understand that one day, in the future, they would be reunited with their first-born child.

In this painting, the artist (one of Rae’s younger brothers) depicted Rae at around the age of 6, sitting up in her bed, smiling and playing with a doll that her family had sent her for her birthday. Always happy, because no one likes a grumpy person.