To My Sister Palizzi:
I dug up my old missionary letters, journal and pictures the other day so I could write a letter I’ve been meaning to get to for some time now… I came across a couple of letters from Kristy and it made me think of her great, quirky sense of humor and contagious happy spirit. I served with Kristy in Dothan, Alabama the end of 1999. One letter had a picture of her dressed as a nun and said: “Sister Act, No Sex. No Booze. No Men. No Way.” She sent me the letter September 2000, only three weeks from her coming home from her mission. This letter was typical Kristy, always trying to make people laugh and smile. She always was telling me how much she loved me and I knew that she did. I also could tell how much she loved everyone around her. She especially loved her family and talked about them all the time. She talked about wanting to set up her brother, Andy, with one of her mission companions. I ended up meeting Andy through another friend of mine in a BYU singles ward and felt like I already knew him. He later ended up marrying one of Kristy’s companions.
We always had a great time listening to church music and Disney tunes in our missionary car. Some of our favorites were “The Ugly Bug Ball, Tarzan”, and Hilary Weeks “He Will”. Some of her funniest moments occurred when we had cockroaches in the apartment and she would grab a can of starch and spray them stiff or she would quote the movie lines from “Steel Magnolias”. She had a great big heart for the youth in our area. We worked with a family in the ward that had a teenage daughter that was struggling with some things, and Kristy took her under her wing, talked to her, loved her and tried to help her see her potential as a Daughter of God. You could tell that this young girl really looked up to Kristy and appreciated her advice and loved her as well. She loved and respected our Mission President, President Millett and his wife, as well. She was so excited to go and see them at their homecoming when they returned home from their mission.
Kristy was always dressed nice and took time to present herself well. By the time I was finishing up with my mission, we tried converting her to wear jumpers and cotton skirts like some of us other sisters did. We always wanted to wear her clothes because she had the best wardrobe. She loved pear lotion from Victoria’s secret and every time I smell it, I think of Kristy. I loved to hear Kristy sing. Some of my favorite memories were when Kristy sung, whether it was in Zone Conference with Sister Bridgers, a baptism or even just in the car.
When she got home from her mission and she moved down to Utah, she was so anxious to set me up and find me a husband. She was always trying to set everyone up and marry them off. She always took great care of her appearance, her home and made people feel so welcome. My only regret is that I didn’t get to spend as much time with Kristy since she had moved to Utah. Kristy had a way of making everyone feel loved. I love reading about how many lives she touched. I am forever grateful I was one of them. You’ll be in forever in my heart, “Sister Palizzi”! Happy Birthday!
Crystal Hawkins Turner
I dug up my old missionary letters, journal and pictures the other day so I could write a letter I’ve been meaning to get to for some time now… I came across a couple of letters from Kristy and it made me think of her great, quirky sense of humor and contagious happy spirit. I served with Kristy in Dothan, Alabama the end of 1999. One letter had a picture of her dressed as a nun and said: “Sister Act, No Sex. No Booze. No Men. No Way.” She sent me the letter September 2000, only three weeks from her coming home from her mission. This letter was typical Kristy, always trying to make people laugh and smile. She always was telling me how much she loved me and I knew that she did. I also could tell how much she loved everyone around her. She especially loved her family and talked about them all the time. She talked about wanting to set up her brother, Andy, with one of her mission companions. I ended up meeting Andy through another friend of mine in a BYU singles ward and felt like I already knew him. He later ended up marrying one of Kristy’s companions.
We always had a great time listening to church music and Disney tunes in our missionary car. Some of our favorites were “The Ugly Bug Ball, Tarzan”, and Hilary Weeks “He Will”. Some of her funniest moments occurred when we had cockroaches in the apartment and she would grab a can of starch and spray them stiff or she would quote the movie lines from “Steel Magnolias”. She had a great big heart for the youth in our area. We worked with a family in the ward that had a teenage daughter that was struggling with some things, and Kristy took her under her wing, talked to her, loved her and tried to help her see her potential as a Daughter of God. You could tell that this young girl really looked up to Kristy and appreciated her advice and loved her as well. She loved and respected our Mission President, President Millett and his wife, as well. She was so excited to go and see them at their homecoming when they returned home from their mission.
Kristy was always dressed nice and took time to present herself well. By the time I was finishing up with my mission, we tried converting her to wear jumpers and cotton skirts like some of us other sisters did. We always wanted to wear her clothes because she had the best wardrobe. She loved pear lotion from Victoria’s secret and every time I smell it, I think of Kristy. I loved to hear Kristy sing. Some of my favorite memories were when Kristy sung, whether it was in Zone Conference with Sister Bridgers, a baptism or even just in the car.
When she got home from her mission and she moved down to Utah, she was so anxious to set me up and find me a husband. She was always trying to set everyone up and marry them off. She always took great care of her appearance, her home and made people feel so welcome. My only regret is that I didn’t get to spend as much time with Kristy since she had moved to Utah. Kristy had a way of making everyone feel loved. I love reading about how many lives she touched. I am forever grateful I was one of them. You’ll be in forever in my heart, “Sister Palizzi”! Happy Birthday!
Crystal Hawkins Turner
No comments:
Post a Comment