I’m absolutely thrilled to bring you this compilation of endearing memories about my mom, the honest to a fault, overly opinionated, hilarious, and always generous Georgette B. Campbell. When we were kids, she’d load us up in the minivan and make an announcement: she was the captain, and whoever was sitting shotgun was the co-captain, she’d describe the vehicle stats, the “flight number” was the time on the digital clock, and she would ask us to put on our seatbelts, stow our tray tables, settle in for take off, complete with an ETA and the current temp and weather report of our destination, no matter if we were traveling 5 minutes or 5 hours. She did this anytime we had friends in the car, and they thought it was highly entertaining! She had a plethora of funny little sayings, and she was absolutely as “handy as a pocket on a shirt”. If she was ready to get off the phone, she’d say “well I oughta let you get back to your rat killing”, and you assumed it meant this conversation was coming to a close. If something smelled foul, it would “make a train wanna take a dirt road”. Somedays you would call her at work, and she’d be “busy as a cat covering up shit on a marble floor” or “busy as a one-legged man in a butt-kicking contest” or nervous “as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs”… there have to be so many more! Leave the ones I left out in the comments (looking at you John Campbell, Paul Gadt, and Aunt Nancy!).

Celebrating an impressive 72 years and 293 days on earth, here’s to an epic eternity in heaven, we will never be the same since knowing and loving you Mama dearest.

If you’d like to be featured in next year’s tribute, here’s the link to do so.