My Sister

VIRGINIA DAWN WHITE "Ginny"
Virginia Dawn Kuntz was born on a Spring morning April 4, at dawn in Buffalo, New York to John Wesley Kuntz and the former Virginia Blanchard (Sissy). She had a brother Jack and a sister Valerie.
She was an adorable bright happy child with beautiful curls a'la Shirley Temple. Although she desperately wanted to participate with the other children, she was cautioned by her parents against vigorous play due to health problems she had had since birth. She was home tutored as the regular school atmosphere was deemed to be too risky for her well being. Although in later years, as an adult, Ginny , on her own, took the bus 10 miles each way to a vocational school to receive her high school diploma. We were very proud of her ambition and accomplishment.
As most little girls do, she enjoyed playing with paper dolls and coloring books. She had a large "model doll" with hair she could comb and many outfits she could put on her. Her favorite book was an opera book with colorful pictures of the productions of various operas and their elaborate costumes. She was the typical American girl. She was a bobby-soxer who loved to jitterbug and listen to Frank Sinatra. She loved going to the movies, particularly "swashbucklers" starring Cornell Wilde.
She had a gorgeous singing voice and the family encouraged her to sing. We would harmonize in the car on family outings to "Down in the Valley", "Heart of my Heart" and "Harvest Moon." She sang in the church choir. Her voice stood out among all the rest. Her favorite hymn was "In the Garden". She loved Christmastime and her favorite carol was "Oh Come all ye Faithful". She could do a rendition of "Somewhere over the Rainbow" that would put Judy Garland to shame.
Despite her poor eyesight, Ginny was quite an artist. The figures she drew were long and lean as she was. Her mother said her drawing style reminded her of the artist known as "El Greco". She always made handmade cards for us on our birthdays. They are better than any store bought ones. I have kept them all.
The family always thought of Ginny as mild and quiet, but she always thought of herself as being like the strong willful heroines in movies like "Jane Eyre" and "Gone with the Wind". She was madly in love with "Heathcliff" in "Wuthering Heights". Her favorite color was red and she liked to dress in modern styles. Like a lot of women she loved stylish shoes. She was forced to wear therapeutic footwear as a child and she made up for it later with many snazzy pairs. She never liked having her picture taken wearing her glasses.
While still quite young she developed a white streak in her dark hair of which she was quite proud. There was a Revlon ad campaign out during that time for their "Fire and Ice" fragrance. They featured a model with dark hair with the white streak who always wore sexy red outfits. Ginny closely identified with that image. Later Ginny became a blond again as when she was a child. The look suited her well. She always had her makeup on and nail polish on fingers and toes.
She loved animals and sunbathing. She was a jewelry maven and collected crosses, the more elaborate the better. She collected frogs, either figurines or plush, her favorite flower was Gardenia, her favorite time of year was Fall and her favorite food was Sissy's (our Mother's) home made spaghetti and meatballs.
She was highly intelligent, quick minded, witty and cool with a never ending supply of quips and one liners. She was a walking encyclopedia of every movie, tv and musical performer. She could tell you , without hesitation, who was in what show and who sang what song.
She and I were very close, despite the fact that there were twelve years difference in our ages. We would double date often. She met and eventually married a man named John White. Their wedding was July 8. The marriage was brief and Ginny was not upset to say goodbye to Mr. White.
Ginny loved children although she never had any of her own. She was self-supporting as a live in "Nanny" for a few different families. All the children and families she worked for loved her and considered her a part of their families. Many of the kids kept in contact with her even after they were grown.
She was very spiritual and had a strong Christian faith. She was the designated sayer of Grace each night at the dinner table. Her standard prayer before meals was; " We thank thee Father, wise and good, for homes and friends and daily food; Bless to our use this food we take, and keep us all for Jesus' sake. Amen"
She told me that the morning I was born she had stayed up all the night before, waiting for the news that I had arrived . She told me it was worth it.
She was my best friend in the world. She taught me how to whistle and speak pig-latin. She was my constant companion. I don't think we spent more than a few days apart in all the years we had together. She had the worlds best sense of humor. We would spend hours talking, laughing and just enjoying being together. She radiated goodness.
Ginny and our mother were close pals, also. They would take little weekend trips as well as dining out together and shopping. When Mother fell ill, Ginny spent countless hours in the hospital with her. Everybody loved Ginny. She accepted all her trials and tribulations gracefully and was an inspiration to all who knew her.
Ginny passed away on Easter weekend March 30, 2002. Ginny always said she was so grateful for her wonderful family. I know we were grateful for her.

VXA ©