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Forums :: Dan Peek Fan Blog :: Dan Peek RIP

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Poster: almora
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My sister Sylvia and I attended Dan's wake yesterday from 2:00PM to 4:00PM. We embarked on the six hour drive from Chicago on Saturday afternoon. We sang along to America music as we drove through the corn fields of Illinois. I told Sylvia the America story from start to finish based on what I know from reading Dan’s book and my being a (very tiny) part of the America family. We passed through St. Louis, and shared a special memory of the great Arch. In 1964, Dad drove the family through St. Louis on the way to Mexico. The Arch was in its final phase of construction, with only the tip missing. On the way home a month later, the Arch was completed. We made our way on U.S. 67 from St. Louis to Farmington. We stayed at the Holiday Inn. Comfortable. Sunday morning I sat around playing all the Dan Peek songs I could remember, and worked on an original song I’ve been writing for a few months now, named, America. Seriously. Sylvia sang along and gave me some ideas for lyrics. We dressed and stepped out to a typical blazing Missouri summer day. We had lunch and headed for the funeral home, five minutes away. The short drive took us through the old downtown section of Farmington, populated by the police station, court house, government buildings, churches, a large music store, and many older, but well-kept brick homes. Large lawns and leafy trees. Farmington is the seat of St. Francois county. From hotel row to old downtown, it is a little gem of the Midwest. We turned a corner and saw the funeral home sign with Dan's name on it. We had made it. The building is cheerful and clean on the outside, with columns in front and large windows. It must have been a large, elegant private home before it became a funeral home. As we walked in, we entered a wide hallway running to the back of the house, with a visitation room on either side. The room on the left was filled with activity and the room on the right was empty. So I took a breath, realizing Dan was resting in the room on the left. A line of 25 people had already filled the hallway and was growing fast. As we reached the entrance to the visitation room, we made a sharp-right turn and could see Dan resting at the far end of the room. We signed the guest book and waited for our turn to visit with Dan. Dan’s father Milton Peek sat prominently in the center of the visitation room, facing the line. You could not miss the resemblance between father and son. A very tall man whom I got the impression is a spiritual leader kneeled next to Mr. Peek, consoling him. A number of people were waiting to speak with Mr. Peek, and they patiently waited for this man to finish. Mr. Peek had a slight smile, nodded and responded frequently, in a clear, intelligent voice. Mr. Peek set a tone of quiet cheerfulness that filled the room. Strong. We stepped up to visit Dan. He looked in perfect health. His face glowed in the sunshine coming in through the large windows. I thought: ‘Thanks for the great music and friendship, Dan. You lived life to the full.’ Catherine stood next to the casket, with clasped hands and a determined smile. She is as beautiful as ever. She wore a simple dress, and sported blonde hair in a simple, straight, young (so Sylvia tells me) hairstyle. Sylvia and I explained to Catherine that we came from Chicago, and that Dan and America inspired me to start playing music. I told her that her musical partnership and marriage with Dan are also an inspiration. She said, "That's sweet. We were joined at the hip." She has a mild Southern accent. She thanked us for making the trip. We then moved near Mr. Peek in hopes of getting a chance to speak with him. An increasing number of people gathered around him, so we walked around. By now the funeral home was becoming full, with people spilled out to the second visitation room. There were a number of beautiful flower arrangements placed about. The centerpiece was a large, magnificent arrangement with a variety of flowers including irises (one of the few flowers I can name), from Dewey and Gerry. It had a message expressing how Dan will be missed, and how he will live on through his music. The visiting area where Dan rested had two large sections. Dan lay in the larger section, with rows of chairs surrounded by some sofas. Opposite Dan, at the front of the house, was a large second section, which had a large, elegant fireplace, and was probably once a library. The center of the library had sofas and chairs facing a wide screen TV playing a video, framed by the large paned windows that formed the front of the house. To the right was set up a tribute to Dan's music. Dan’s America albums, Christian albums, and Gold and Platinum awards in glass cases were arranged around the fireplace and on the mantle. We stood in the library shoulder-to-shoulder with others watching the video. It was a slide show of photos of Dan and Catherine, and photos of Dan with America and his Christian bands - with Dan Peek music as background. We now walked around. Two other TVs were set up in different parts of the house. One TV played the same video that was playing in the library. The other TV played a video with mostly childhood and family photos, and included a number of photos of Dan and his brother Tom holding live turkeys. From the photos I gather it’s not easy to hold down a turkey, and harder yet to hold down several at a time. Spread around the home were around 20 lovely original Dan Peek paintings. They were painted on thick pieces of wood, around eight by twelve inches in size. I recognized many of these from his stories on his web site about life on Grand Cayman with Catherine. Dan wrote the name of every painting on its back and signed it in ink pen. The funeral home had a nice mix of new and antique furnishings, and photos and paintings from last century. There is an antique piano and an antique organ. The highlight of the home is its four large, elegant, antique grandfather clocks in excellent condition – all of them running and set to correct time. Cozean (pronounced “co-zeen” by the employees) was the perfect setting for bidding Dan farewell. It was finally time to go. We saw Catherine head to the back of the house. We found her in a large kitchen, seated with a group of people. Catherine saw us and stood. I handed her a card and gave her a small hug. I shared with the group at the table about Dan’s music inspiring me. I mentioned that Sylvia is a singer, and that she and I have performed lots of America music onstage together. We said goodbye. On the way home we played the nostalgia game, remembering life in the 1970s, when America filled the air, and we were so young.


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