Arnold and Newlin: postscript 1986

Arnie and Newlin, 1952

Arnie and Newlin, circa 1980

There is no transition after death. Newlin and the family's lives changed dramatically after July 4, 1986. Newlin became a widow and went into mourning for a year or more, avoiding social functions for the most part. Her sister Eloise visited frequently during that year and made sure Newlin was never alone during holidays. Andrew and Eric lived at home and continued their studies, while Joel left Florida at the end of the summer for a conference in Europe and then lived in New York City for a year while looking for a job in Academia. Allan came to Florida for the funeral and returned to northern California to resume his life there. 

Newlin worked as an Alachua County school nurse several more years before retiring and working as a traveling nurse for the Florida State Children's Medical Services and she volunteered in Florida's Guardian ad Litem program.

In the early 1990s, Newlin had their son Eddie disinterred from Forest Lawn in Glendale and re-interred in the Tallahassee Memory Gardens in the family plots there. (This was done largely because Arnie's sister Laura had cancer so moving Eddie from Bill and Hazel's four plots in Glendale made room for Laura next to her sister and parents when she died in 1992. But it was also part of a long term plan for moving Eddie when Arnie and Newlin found a "final resting" place. Eddie's casket had been put in a vault so it could be disinterred more easily. Newlin was not able to be present for the reinterment so her sisters Eloise and Floreine had to do the grim job of verifying the body in the casket before it could be placed in the ground.) 

Of the four plots in Tallahassee with Arnie and Eddie flanking an empty one reserved for Newlin, the fourth was promised to Joel since as a gay man he had no prospects for marriage in 1986 and had no plans to have or adopt children, so he was expected to die alone.

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Arnold and Newlin: 1986

1986 concludes the story of Arnold and Newlin together.

Ashmore sisters Eloise and Newlin in Gainesville, 1986

Newlin after an exercise class at Gainesville High School, 1986

Joel was working in Ann Arbor at the University of Michigan for a term and returned to Gainesville on July 2. Arnie died of a heart attack in the early hours of July 4. Newlin's sister Eloise happened to be visiting at the time and stayed on to help Newlin with the funeral arrangements and mourning. There was viewing for Arnie in Gainesville and then a second viewing in Tallahassee, where the funeral was subsequently held in a chapel of Culley and Sons Funeral Home. Arnie was buried in Tallahassee Memory Gardens on the edge of Tallahassee, close to Havana, Florida. Later their son Eddie was disinterred from Forest Lawn in Glendale and reinterred in Tallahassee. Newlin bought a fourth plot that was decades later transferred to Joel.

Arnie's obituary in the Gainesville Sun, July 1986

Rev. John Dickson from Westminster Presbyterian Church in Gainesville officiated at Arnie's funeral in Culley and Sons Funeral Home.

order of service for Arnold's funeral, July 8, 1986

order of service

Arnold's certificate of death from Alachua County Public Health, July 10, 1986

a certificate from President Reagan after Arnie died

Deed for four plots in Tallahassee Memory Gardens, July 11, 1987

Tallahassee Memory Gardens deed cover with stamp

March 29, 1988, letter from Abbey Memory Gardens to Newlin about the plots' deed

Arnie died at age 64, just one month shy of his 65th birthday, so he did not make it to his retirement. Because he was still an employee at the University of Florida, he left a larger insurance payout to Newlin than he would have with retirement. And since they had just bought a new car, Newlin make the one car payment and then the car insurance paid the rest of the car, so in a sense he left Newlin a brand new Honda almost for free. She had that car another two decades before passing it on to her grandchildren, who had it another decade. 

Arnie died prematurely; the family would have gladly gone without the "free car" and the insurance payout to hang onto him longer in life. His older brother Leonard, a smoker and a drinker, outlived him by more than twenty years (passing away in 2006). Newlin lived another thirty years as a widow, dying in 2016 at age 90.

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Arnold and Newlin: 1959

Newlin said they had to get on with life quickly after Eddie's death because they had two young highly active sons not pausing their growth to mourning the loss of their brother. Joel was barely a year old and Allan was three and a half.

Here are slides from the 1959 Rose Parade in Pasadena:

Chevrolet float

Quaker Oats float

Long Beach float

Inglewood float

California State Polytechnic University float

Mayor's Trophy, City of South Pasadena float

This next is Leonard's son (Arnie's nephew) Walter from Leonard's second wife Lucille. 

Walter William Nevis, age one

In the summer of 1959 Arnie and Newlin drove to Florida to visit Newlin's family. On the drive back, Newlin's two nieces Linda Langston and Elise Ferrell accompanied them. Linda and Elise experience their first Mexican food in Texas. Also in Texas, Arnie took Linda and Elise to an Elvis concert. On the road trip the family saw attractions such as the Petrified Forest National Park. In California, they visited a mission or two as well as Disneyland.

Allan on a horse, Florida, 1959

Joel and Allan, Florida, 1959

Linda in the Petrified Forest, Arizona

Elise and Joel

Joel in the Petrified Forest

In California they visited the Santa Barbara Mission along with Arnie's sister Laura.

Elise, Newlin, Linda, and Laura, Mission Santa Barbara

Newlin, Joel, Elise, Linda, Allan, and Laura, Mission Santa Barbara

Joel in San Bernarndino

Allan, Mission Santa Barbara

Allan, Linda, Joel, and Elise, Mission Santa Barbara

Laura, Allan, and Linda, Mission Santa Barbara

Elise, Linda, Newlin, and Joel, Mission Santa Barbara

Relaxing at home in the Nevis apartment in Westwood, Joel observed the adults eating potato chips with dip; not quite getting the dip concept, he shoved one in Linda's mouth with toothpaste on it.

Allan, Joel, and Newlin in Westwood

Newlin, Joel, Elise, Allan, and Linda in Westwood

Newlin, Elise, Allan, Joel, and Linda in Westwood

Linda, Elise, Allan, Joel and Arnie in Disneyland

Joel and Allan, Westwood, California

Joel

Joel, Arnie and Allan

Joel in Glendale

Joel in Griffith Park

Firefighters Allan and Joel

Joel at play

Joel's second birthday

Joel after the birthday party

Joel and Allan on Santa's lap

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Arnold and Newlin: 1958 Eddie falls ill

In 1958 Arnie and Newlin learn that Eddie has acute leukemia. They had just signed to buy a house in the San Fernando Valley, but managed to get out of it so they could rent an apartment adjacent to the UCLA campus — for a shorter commute by bicycle for Arnie and for the convenience of being closer to the hospital for Eddie.

Eddie's ID from UCLA Medical Center, 1958

Nursie is writing on the Wakulla County tax assessor's stationery so she crosses the title out.
(She had been tax assessor after her husband died; he had also been tax assessor for Wakulla County.)

Here are a few of the last photos of Eddie's life:

Allan with a very thin Eddie, summer 1958, Los Angeles, California

Eddie playing in the back yard of their Westwood apartment, summer 1958 (developed in November 1959)

Eddie and Newlin in the yard of their Westwood (Los Angeles), California, apartment

Here is a get well card from Newlin's nieces and nephews Julia, Robert, Susan, David, and Jane:

This letter is from Newlin's cousin Helen Durrance. (We always called her Aunt Helen). 

The Durrance clan, with Sallie Durrance and three of her four daughters, their spouses and grandchildren, Florida;
Helen on the ladder in the back

Sallie Durrance and her four daughters, with Helen in the very back, Florida, 1952;
the other three daughters are Bertie, Copie and Devota 

The Durrance family at Alligator Point, Florida, 1956. Due to beach erosion, the house had to be moved back at least two times

Helen's nephew Wilburn Lamar "Sporty" Hartsfield, 1957

Two of the Durrance sisters (one is Helen) with Floreine (Newlin's sister), November 20, 1955

Newlin mentioned that Eddie was in an experimental program at UCLA for testing leukemia treatments, and he was lucky to be in it; families were desperate to seek out such experiments for their dying children. She once said that Eddie got two of the four drugs that would within two years have prolonged his life into young adulthood.

Also in that UCLA leukemia treatment program was Richard Skelton, the son of comedian Red Skelton. He was four years older than Eddie, and Arnie and Newlin observed Richard's progress closely, as Eddie's ups and downs with treatment would shadow those of Richard. Richard died in May 1958.

hematology report for Eddie, UCLA

Eddie died on September 7, 1958 at the UCLA Medical Center. Newlin reminisced that in those days one could open the windows in the hospital, and at the very moment Eddie passed away a gentle breeze blew through the room. They allowed themselves some time alone with their deceased son before calling in the hospital staff. 

He was subsequently buried in a vault in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale next to his Aunt Dolly. Several decades later, after Arnie died and Newlin had purchased plots in Tallahassee, Eddie was disinterred from Glendale and reinterred in Florida, making room in Forest Lawn for his Aunt Laura to be buried there in 1992 next to Dolly.

September 16, 1958, certificate of death copy at the Division of Vital Statistics, Department of Health, Los Angeles

Eddie's 1958 certificate of death lists September 7 for his death, acute leukemia for the cause, and September 9 for his burial

Over a year later, Arnie and Newlin make a $500 donation to Cal Tech in Eddie's name, presumably with money from an insurance policy.

For the rest of their lives Newlin and Arnie donated to leukemia charity work and to charities such as the Make-A-Wish Foundation: Newlin always remembered that Eddie had wanted his parents to buy a new car, which they would do only a bit later in 1960.

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