Category Archives: Eight Bells

Eight bells for Linda Hilty

4/28/17
Port Salerno, FL
Posted by Bill

“The sounding of ship’s bell is well rooted in the history and tradition of the maritime industry. The bell marked time onboard and divided the day into shifts or “watches” for the crew. At the end of the last shift, the end of the last watch, eight bells rang out – Eight Bells and All is Well. A sailor’s time for rest.” – Source: Boat US web site.

It is with great sadness that I write this post. We arrived back in the US 2 days ago to the news that our dear friend and “family” member Linda Hilty passed away. Linda, her husband Jim, and their sons, Neal and Shawn, have been lifelong friends and have always been considered part of the immediate family. We have enjoyed more than 12 years of family vacations, and many good times together. She was one of the nicest and most helpful people I have ever met, always very giving, and there to lend a hand. We will always be grateful to have spent the time we did together, and also for the many times they helped my Mom. Our hearts go out to the family. We feel terrible that we could not make arrangements to leave our boat and travel in time to PA for the services. One of the last times we were together was when they came to see us in the Keys and we went to Key West together. It was great fun. Here we were at the Green Parrot bar:
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Linda will surely be missed, but never forgotten!

Eight bells for Sally Bell Wehmer

Today we said goodbye to a wonderful part of our lives, Bill’s mother Sally. It has been tough on Island Bound as we wrestled with how we felt during the last weeks of Sally’s life before her passing. Bill is usually the blogger in our family but I wanted to write this post as a tribute to Sally and the wonderful family that she created. I am sure Bill will censor me if I get it wrong. I was lucky enough to become a part of that family 25 years ago and for that I am truly thankful. I first met Sally when she came to visit Bill in Columbus in 1991. I had a furry kid at the time, my golden retriever Samantha. Samantha had one bad habit that I could never get her to stop. She would welcome you by holding on to a part of you. Usually it was the sleeve of your shirt by your wrist or your wrist if you had no sleeves. She was the gentlest dog, but her security blanket was holding on to you so you were forced to pet her. She knew you would tell her not to do it, but she didn’t care, she did it anyway. When Sally came through the door, Sam said hello in her usual way. I could hear Sally calling for Bill trying to figure out what the situation was. She wasn’t sure if she was getting attacked by a strange dog or if she had a new best friend. Once she realized she had a new best friend, we all had a good laugh and I knew I had met someone special.
Sally had 4 sons, of which Bill is the eldest. Bill always swears he had the best mom in the world. She loved them unconditionally. She would do anything for her boys and her boys would do anything for her. Sally was the glue that kept her family together. I will fondly remember all the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays where Sally’s house was overflowing with grandchildren, friends and extended family. Everyone having a good time laughing and telling stories about all the crazy things they had done as children. Sally had the patience of a saint raising her boys, because there was no shortage of stories. When everyone got together, the noise level in the house went up to 10. Bill and I never realized how quiet our house was until we would go to Sally’s house and all his family was together. We had 2 daughters who did not wreak the havoc that 4 boys and their families could. Sally never cared about the kids jumping on the furniture or all the furry grandchildren running and barking. Sally was happy to have her family together. Sally loved each of her children for who they were. She influenced them to be the best version of themselves, but she never condemned them for making mistakes or even choices that she would not have made. This coming from someone who lives on a sailboat is a testament to that. Her life was all about other people whether it was through public service or just meeting someone and putting a smile on their face. Sally became Grandma Sally to everyone. We knew this because if you ever took Sally to Giant Eagle, it took you 3 hours to say hello to everyone she knew in the store while you bought a loaf of bread. The example she set for everyone was a positive force behind whom each of her children and grandchildren are today.
In Sally’s later years, she suffered from dementia. Her family was forced to make the decision to move her out of her house filled with memories and laughter into an assisted living facility. Sally was not at all happy with this scenario and she never stopped wanting to go home. We all struggled over the years as Sally’s ability to recognize her family waned. We continued to support Sally and each other with stories and laughter once again. The memories and the stories are now forever a part of who we are. We were sad that Sally could no longer grasp the memories that were being made as her great grandchildren came into the world and her children and grandchildren continued to thrive.
The last few weeks, we had the discussions about how we felt about “losing” Sally. We said we had lost pieces of her over the last few years due to the condition that robbed her of her memories. A few weeks ago Bill and I visited Sally for the last time. We didn’t know it would be the last time and our visits were sometimes met with trepidation because you never knew how they would go, but we went anyway. We had the best time with her. We sat with her and laughed while she made up crazy stories about all the things that were jumbled in her mind. We were just glad to be there and she was glad we were there. She didn’t know who we were or who she was, but we knew even if she didn’t. We met Judy who had been serving Sally breakfast and lunch every day since she was unable to go to the main dining room. We were glad to know Sally was still surrounded by caring people who appreciated her. She told us that Sally made her laugh and brightened her days. Some things never change. We were glad to get a piece of Sally returned to us.
I started this by saying that we said goodbye to Sally, but not that we lost her. Sally’s spirit lives on in the stories and in her family. I see it in her sons as they prepared themselves and their families for the end of her physical days. How they honored her final wishes and planned how to celebrate her life. I see it in how they raised their children. I see her in our children as they raise their children. They don’t stress about the mess and noise, they laugh and create their own memories and celebrate each day as a gift. They love people for who they are and family comes first. Sally created a wonderful family and now she can rest. Her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren will carry her torch. We are saddened by her passing, but grateful for the lessons she taught us and the memories that will sustain us. Live, love, laugh and the rest will take care of itself. Sally can finally go home and get her family back.

“The sounding of ship’s bell is well rooted in the history and tradition of the maritime industry. The bell marked time on board and divided the day into shifts or ‘watches’ for the crew. At the end of the last shift, the end of the last watch, eight bells rang out – Eight Bells and All is Well. A sailor’s time for rest.” – Source: Boat US web site.

Eight bells for our friend Terri

8/20/15
Catawaba Island, OH, Lake Erie
Posted by Bill

“The sounding of ship’s bell is well rooted in the history and tradition of the maritime industry. The bell marked time onboard and divided the day into shifts or ‘watches’ for the crew. At the end of the last shift, the end of the last watch, eight bells rang out – Eight Bells and All is Well. A sailor’s time for rest.” – Source: Boat US web site.

It is with a sad and heavy heart that I write this post. Today we learned of the passing of one of our close friends, Terri Copeland. She was always fun to be with and she brightened the life of everyone she met. We will cherish the good times we had and will miss her very much.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Bob, Kieth, Kyle, extended family and friends.

Eight Bells…in honor of our friend Jerry

2/8/15
Marathon FL
Posted by Bill

“The sounding of ship’s bell is well rooted in the history and tradition of the maritime industry. The bell marked time onboard and divided the day into shifts or “watches” for the crew. At the end of the last shift, the end of the last watch, eight bells rang out – Eight Bells and All is Well. A sailor’s time for rest.” – Source: Boat US web site.

We learned today that our good friend and fellow sailor, Jerry Griffith, passed away on Thursday. We met them several years ago at our marina on Lake Erie. He and his wife Brenda had just purchased a really nice Island Packet boat that was in incredible condition, moved it to a dock about 10 slips down from us, and were going to take it cruising. Having so much in common, we quickly became friends. Shortly after buying their boat, Jerry found out that he had cancer and was going through treatments up to, and beyond our departure. We kept in touch regularly and he was an avid blog follower. We had hoped to make it to Key West by New Years so we could see them while they were there vacationing, but we weren’t able to do it. We never knew how serious it was for him. When we talked, we always asked how he was doing, but never dwelled on his condition unless he wanted to talk in more detail, usually shifting to talk of family, sailing and cruising. He never complained about being ill, and if you didn’t know about it, you wouldn’t have figured it out based on his attitude. He and Brenda both were strong, brave and positive…a true example to all. We always hoped we would someday see them along the ICW or Bahamas, Jerry in full recovery. This is truly a sad day for us, and our hearts go out to Brenda and the family.

Tonight we drink a toast to our friend Jerry. We feel honored to have known him and to be able to call him a friend, and we will miss him.