Almira Funston of the Ladies' Guild

A delightful message landed in my Ancestry inbox from a woman who had come across an old newspaper article mentioning members of the Melick family in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. She thoughtfully passed it along to Melick researchers like me. How kind of her to take a few extra minutes to do that.

The article appeared in The Columbian, a newspaper circulating in Bloomsburg in 1896. It serves as a lengthy obituary for Almira Melick Funston, who died of what was then referred to as “paralysis.” At the time, the term was used broadly to describe a loss of muscle function, often resulting from what we now understand as a stroke. It was frequently described as a "stroke of paralysis" or "apoplexy" and could be fatal or leave lasting disability. Almira was 69 years old.

That Friday morning, she had been busy with the women of the St. Paul’s Episcopal Church Guild. After the other ladies had gone, she was alone in the passageway between the church and the parish house when the affliction struck. She wasn’t found until nearly an hour later. Taken home, she was unable to speak but still understood what was said to her. She passed away a few days later.

St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Main and Iron Streets, Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. (The Historical Marker Database, https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=119394).

Parish House of the Episcopal Church. (The Historical Marker Database, https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=119394).

Almira was fondly remembered for her contributions to the guild, especially her work in the sewing circle. It may have been on those Friday mornings that the women gathered to sew. As a member of the group, she helped produce linens, vestments, and church garments. The ladies also created items for bazaars and missionary support. Sewing machines were still relatively new in the 1890s—perhaps the guild had one to aid their efforts.

Almira is my first cousin, several generations removed, on my mother’s side. She was born in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, in 1827 and lived there all her life. I admire Almira for her devotion to her faith and her active role in the Ladies’ Guild. I also feel a personal connection to her through her sewing—a talent I share—and I’m touched to know her stitches became part of the church’s furnishings and fundraising efforts.

"Stricken with Paralysis," obituary of Mrs. John A. [Almira] Funston, The Columbian (Bloomsburg, Pa.), 30 April 1896, p. 1, col. 1, Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress. https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83032011/1896-04-30/ed-1/seq-1/.