Laura attends her first family wedding. Aunt Karen married Terry Sowash.
Born in Las Vegas, Nevada on December 30, 1986.
She was born at Sunrise Hospital in the evening. Her physican was Dr. Irwin Glassman who would go on to deliver her two beloved cousins Steven and Stephanie. She would go home a few days later with her grandmother Linda while her mom had to stay in the hospital with a mysterious fever.
Only one day old and Laura would have her first sleep over. In a strange turn of events she was well enough to go home, but her mom had to stay in the hospital. So, she went to stay with Ian and his family. Luckily mom was able to go home after a few days. But Laura's love of sleep overs was to last her whole life. Mom and dad never had to go and pick Laura up in the middle of the night, and Laura was always happy to spend the night away from home even if it was just at one of her aunt's houses.
At 17 days Laura took her first of what would become many trips. She was an excellent traveler from the very first and was always happy to be going somewhere. She was always excited to see "places". Her first trip was to see her Great-Grandfather C C Cornman in Coolidge, AZ and to be introduced to her family there.
On this date Laura attended her first birthday party! She went to Cousin Joe's 4th birthday party with many family members. This seemed to set the tone for the rest of Laura's life. She always seemed to love two things family get togethers and parties.
Laura was baptisted on this day in the Catholic faith. She was baptised at St Francis de Sales by Rev. Clarence Savial. Tom & Susie Schorsch stood in for her God-Parents Brenda and Brian Tourville.
From June 10 to June 15 Laura takes her first trip back East and this results in many more first. She has her first airplane ride, attends her first cocktail party. She spends the night in a college dormatory (Harvard no less!) attends her first college graduation.
Meets her great Aunt Nancy and her Great grandmother Laura Loveland, for whom she was named after all for the first time as well as some other family members.
She travels to Maine for the first but not last time, goes to the beach and even sits up on her own. If she was not exhausted by the time we returned to Las Vegas, her mother was.
Eulogy for Laura Tanner
1986 – 2007
I first met cousin Laura in 1991 at a Brown family reunion in Rhode Island. She was 3 and I became her personal jungle gym for the weekend. My love for this little girl grew from this point on. With subsequent visits we became closer. Because she was only 4-5 years old her next trip to RI, I had asked Deborah if I could take her camping. I, just a teenager, was surprised that I was permitted to care for a young child who really didn’t know me for other than for a weekend. But we went and had a great time with her being well behaved, listening to instructions and never being anxious to go home overnight. On other visits we would get movies and hang out, having pizza, and visit with others in the RI gang.
As years passed, I saw her mature from the little child to a young teen. Every time she visited I learned more to love about her - Like the fact that she never ran out of conversational material or her ability to make me laugh. For day trips we would visit her mom’s family in Connecticut, the Mystic aquarium, go down by the RI beaches that she’d ask to see, or visit the Rhode Island state house. My truck would never be silent in any of these excursions. This was actually a good thing, as I am not the best conversationalist. She loved Dunkin’ Doughnuts coffee and had to have the biggest one. We then could not pass any restroom without having to stop. Instead of being annoyed I would just laugh and pull over.
When I visited Vegas, we would hang out just as much. I remember going to pick her up with little Ray from the bus stop. I would ask her how school was and then begin teasing her by saying that the reason she was in a magnet school was because they attracted geeks. But I always knew that she was intelligent and that she could do anything. While the others would go to the casinos, Laura and I would stay behind and do our own things. We’d throw Frisbees, play cards or board games and eat junk food.
When our families weren’t visiting each other, Laura and I still communicated, keeping in touch; sometimes by phone, but more frequently by instant messaging. Sometimes she would have 5 different IM’s going at once and I would get confused as to what she was actually trying to talk to me about. Finally she’ d see this and invite me to her chat room so I’d understand. But she always made it a point to keep talking to me.
As she grew older, she became so busy I would have to keep informed by asking Deborah and Ray how she was. We were always getting pictures of her activities, of her dancing, modeling, or playing volleyball. If she wasn’t doing these things she was always with someone in her great extended family. Aunts, uncles, cousins, traveling to a destination anywhere from Maine to California. Wonderful times like trips to Disney and learning karaoke with Uncle Andy and Aunt Tina, Ashley and Christopher. Or the time she humored the older RI cousins by playing tour guide with her Dad and Mom on a wild west excursion.
Last summer Laura came and spent a week with my wife and I for our baby shower. She spent her time when she first got there helping to set up the party. She then spent the rest of the week helping me cut brush, paint rooms, and haul trash. This is the way I made the poor girl spend her vacation. The week ended with a bridal shower for another RI cousin. But I realized at this moment just how close Laura was to everyone in RI. She made it a point to try and see everyone while there. One person was my young cousin Amanda. I always joked with Laura that Amanda attached herself to Laura the way Laura did to me. Amanda told me that Laura was her favorite cousin and she always looked forward to having her sleep over every visit.
Laura had taken a trip to New Hampshire with Amanda and her grandparents, Aunt Kathy and Uncle Ken, to Hampton Beach to visit their relatives. During the visit they did the beach, boardwalks, and arcades. Other visits Laura found herself digging her toes into RI beaches with Uncle Ken in search of the quahogs for my Dad’s famous clam cakes and chowder.
While going to a modeling competition in New York City, Laura wanted to see her RI cousins but didn’t have time. So my Mom, Em, & Rachel went down to see her and do a 2 day whirlwind tour of NYC. It was there that Em began realizing how much they had in common- both adventurous souls who enjoyed new experiences from food and music to people and places. During her last visit to RI Laura learned how to make Sushi, taught a few cousins how to go on a REAL shopping spree and socialized with all sorts of new folks, always telling stories about our family ties.
One memory that everyone in RI can attest to, is Laura’s love for her parents. Her conversations always included many statements that began “My Mom or My Dad”……………. To Laura, her parents were her bright and shining star. Deborah and Raymond instilled the importance of family as well as a great love for them.
I’m sure if we lived closer to Laura we’d have even more stories and memories; but I find it so impressive that Laura is our 3rd cousin, and even with a large age difference and thousands of miles between us, she holds such a large place in all of our hearts. The bond she has with each of us will never end and she will be thought of at every path we cross.
