The Memorial

On December 2nd, 2022 Nancy and Charles McGlinchey - aka Gam and Faf - were laid to rest in a burial at sea ceremony in Huntington Beach.

This private ceremony, attended by the McGlinchey children - Paul, Jill, Jay - and their respective families, was a beautiful moment of closure – culminating a year of loss, grieving, and the remnants of a global pandemic.

This post tells the story of that day and the road taken to get there.

May 2022 Memorial

Originally, the celebration of life was scheduled for May 2022 – an opportunity for the wider Johnson clan to gather and celebrate our dearly beloved Gam and Faf.

Unfortunately, the Corrigan clan contracted COVID days before they were scheduled to travel to Southern California and were unable to attend.

It was a devastating blow.

Nonetheless, Travis attended the event to represent the Jill and Corrigan Clan – sending videos, photos and updates to his bedridden family in Utah.

Afterwards, Travis volunteered to lead the efforts for another celebration of life later in the year.

The decision

After Jay returned from an extended (and well-deserved) tour through Europe, he and Travis worked out a plan to scatter Gam and Faf's ashes into the sea.

After some research, it was determined that the best approach would be to scatter the ashes from the air in a ceremony know as "burial at sea by plane."

Schedules aligned to have the ceremony held in early December 2022. The Corrigan Clan would spend a week in Southern California – spending a few days at Disneyland (a Corrigan tradition) to celebrate Jill's 60th Birthday.

Per usual, Travis did his Travis Thing™ to try to ensure that logistics were handled smoothly.

The Week

Corrigans @ Disneyland

The Corrigan Clan arrived the week after Thanksgiving 2022 and spend 2 full days exploring both parks – bringing a new generation into the tradition.

Delivering the Ashes

After 2 days of Disney, the Corrigans relocated to Huntington Beach while Travis and Jay delivered Gam and Faf's ashes to the pilot.

Later, Travis would walk down to the beach and get coordinates for the pilot.

The Day

Finally, the day had arrived.

The Corrigans - along with Paul, Jay, and their kin arrived at Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach an hour or so before the pilot was scheduled to conduct the ceremony.

The children played on veranda as the adults talked – the mood was pleasant but melancholic with a dash of nervous anticipation.

Before long, it was time to relocate to the beach.

The weather – which had been dreary and drizzly all morning – had improved significantly.

The clouds remained but dissipated enough to brighten the day, offering a perfect backdrop to see the trail of ashes being dispersed from a passing cesna.

It was almost as if Gam and Faf were reaching back from the great beyond to offer us a perfect goodbye.

The Moment

Finally the moment arrived: the pilot called Travis to indicate she was on her final approach.

And as we prepared for the moment when the passing plane would release the remains of our loved ones we were - we knew there was only one course of action:

One. Last. Crazy Dance.

Closure

Ashes fell from the sky as tear fell from our faces.

We all exhaled that which had been bottled up for the past year: the loss of not only our beloved Gam and Faf but also our sense of connection to a place by the beach that served as a save haven for family to gather and soak up California's warmth.

Gam and Faf Beach

Between lifeguard towers 13 and 15, our beloved Nancy and Charles McGlinchey found their final resting place in the waters that stretched out from the strip of beach they took their children and grandchildren to.

It was decided that these two lifeguard towers would serve as symbolic gravestones. They sit side by side, facing the vast Pacific, just like Gam and Faf did in their beach chairs.

Coincidentally, we discovered a divine pattern in this symbolism:

• Gam's birth year: 1933 = Lifeguard Tower 13
• Faf's birth year: 1935 = Lifeguard Tower 15

Below is a photo of the stretch of beach between Tower 13 (right, Gam) and Tower 15 (left, Faf) – now dubbed "Gam and Faf" Beach.

In Loving Memory

Huntington Beach has been the manifestation of our family's identify for decades.

Family members from near and far have converged on this city to gather and commune at Chuck and Nan's house. Many of our fondest memories - both big and small - were generated within the walls of a two-story mid-century house on the corner of Northfield Lane.

For those of us who did not grow up in California, Gam and Faf's house sometimes felt more like home than our actual residence – like uprooted plants returning to soil.

Their house was more than just a safe haven. It was a way-station for us out-of-towners to freely and easily explore the comfort and adventure of Southern California. A secure foundation from which we could venture out to let our spirits roam and play.

Gam and Faf were people. But they were also a place. One and the same.

With their passing - the house was the last remaining physical connection we had to Gam and Faf. And with the sale of the house – we felt our connection to their memory and to our own memories severed.

Our safe haven was no longer available to us. We needed to create a new one. Another place within Huntington Beach that offered the sense of soothing and permanence that Gam and Faf's house offered.

With the creation of Gam and Faf Beach, we now have a new safe haven – a place to visit, to gather.

And a new set of physical structures that connect us to the spirits of our beloved and dearly departed: the stretch of beach between two Lifeguard Towers that extends directly from the Huntington Beach Bridge traversing Pacific Coast Highway.

We love and miss you Gam and Faf. Thank you for all you offered to your children and grandchildren. We'll see you soon.