Jay & Carolyn Goodrich "Christmas 2008" Family letter

It has been a few years since I have written a christmas newsletter. I went to look at my "2008" calendar to see what happened during January of this year. The thought came to me, I have to go back to June 29, 2007, the evening JaLynn's husband, Tracy & his father, George, were killed in the Neola North Wildfire. They told Duane, our 11 year old grandson (at the time) to run, & his life was spared. Despite all the numbness & pain, & all the sorrow, we feel blessed. George & Tracy were good men. They were helping a friend when it happened. They were brave men. We are so proud of JaLynn. She stepped right in, took over Tracy's responsibility, as well as her own, & has grown & matured in so many ways. JaLynn puts her family first, as she should. Shalayne is in her third year of college. Emily is in her first year of college. Britney is a junior in high school. Haley is in the ninth grade, Duane is in the 7th grade, & Cassie is in the 5th grade. JaLynn is the Relief Society 2nd counselor. She is always willing to help where & when she can. Jay & I tended JaLynn's children in August, while she flew to Alaska with friends & went on a cruise.

Bret & Mica have Avery who is in the 5th grade, Jaxx, who is in the 4th grade, Alix is in the 2nd grade, Anastin is in the 1st grade, Rixx is almost 5 years old & attends pre-school, & Keatyn is 3 years olf. Do you think their family keeps them busy? I think so, especially their mother. Mica is in the Young Women's in their ward. Bret is the Elder's Quorum President. He & Ken own Nielco Roofing Company. They work very hard. They do a lot of business in Park City, Utah.

Jim & Jen have Kaylee, who is in the ninth grade, Jaydon is in the sixth grade, Maren is in the 5th grade, Jessely is in the 3rd grade, & Brenna is in Kindergarten. Jim is a Stake clerk over computer technology. Jen is the compassionate service leader in their ward Relief Society. (I have had this calling in our ward. It was my favorite calling) Jim & two friends started Flight Deck Avionics. They do airplane installation & repair. Jim works very hard.

Ken & Lori have Kalan who is in the 2nd grade, Rixx is in the 1st grade. Zane is 4 1/2 years old. Attli is 2 1/2 years old. I tell Attli to tell her dad that she needs a sister! We'll see if he listens! Ken & Lori love their new home & enjoy their ward. Lori has a calling in the scouting program. As I told you before, Ken & Bret have Nielco Roofing Company. Lori is trained as an Occupation Therapy Assistant. She works part-time, when they call her.

Mike & Heather have Brooklyn who is in the 2nd grade. Braden is in Kindergarten. Emersyn is 3 years old. Cohen Tracy is almost 8 months old. Cohen is our little miracle baby! Everyone loves Cohen, the father, mother, grandpa, grandma, aunts & uncles & all of the cousins. Mike & Heather teach the eight year olds in Primary. Mike owns Evergreen Gutter Works. They do rain gutter, soffit, etc. They do a lot of work using copper in Park City, Utah. Mike is a hard worker.

Jay & Carolyn work in the Salt Lake L.D.S. Temple on Thursdays & Fridays, the a.m. shift, which starts at 5:45 a.m., but I have a meeting that starts at 5 a.m., & Jay has a meeting that starts at 5:15 a.m. Usually, we are through at 11 a.m. We enjoy our callings. We have met many nice people, & it is a special, reverent place to be, in the temple.

Our favorite calling is being grandparents to 25 beautiful, special grandchildren! We enjoy & love them so much! Each one is blessed with their special talents & personalities.

As you know, we lost our niece & cousin, Laura Leigh Kirkland on Monday night, March 24, 2007, the day after Easter, in a horrible car accident. It was another of those "what, I can't believe what you are saying!" moments. I do not like those calls. I don't think you ever get over these tragedies of loss, but Heavenly Father blesses you & carries you through them. Over time, they get a little easier to bear. It's still hard for me to talk about Tracy & Laura. I, so feel for Pat & Farrel! Tracy & Laura are fine. We have to live, so that we can be with them, again. Family is the most important part of life!

I think I could write a Book with all that has happened the last year & a half. Heavenly Father has truly blessed us in so many ways. All we have to do is look around at others to see how truly blessed we are!

May you have a blessed Christmas & a very Happy New Year! May our Heavenly Father bless you with all the righteous desires of your heart. He loves you, as do Jay & I.