Shedding Tears For Diana Spokane Joins The Mourning For Late Princess With Memorial Service
Judi Kirk wiped her red eyes, Kelly Dunnavant stained her program with tears and Annette Gorseth filled her purse with Kleenex.
They cried for a woman they never met - although Gorseth once stood an arm’s length away from her.
About 250 Spokane people joined them in mourning Princess Diana, who died at age 36 with her lover and driver in a car wreck Sunday.
St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church opened its doors Friday afternoon to mourners for Diana and for her friend, Mother Teresa, who died Friday.
Most came for Diana, leaving behind donations and notes, which will be forwarded to Kensington Palace. The money will go to Diana’s favorite charities.
The notes were familiar messages to a friend. They called Diana “dear” and “daughter” and the “people’s princess.” These people worried about the two sons left behind and the lost hope for the future.
“I too was a single mother and had spells of depression, so I related to you,” one woman confessed. “My youngest son died from AIDS in 1989 so from the bottom of my heart I thank you for what you did for the people with this terrible disease and the people who loved them.”
The Episcopal Church is part of an association of churches called the Anglican Communion, whose founding church is the Church of England. The Church of England is also the church of the British monarchy.
During the 90-minute memorial service at St. Stephen’s, English transplant Richard Davis led the audience on a tour of Diana’s life. He described her as a gawky lamb who grew into a graceful princess.
Davis gave a history lesson on the Royal Family, touched on Diana’s problems with her marriage and bulimia, and stressed her work with children and the downtrodden.
“This is not Woodstock,” Davis said. “You didn’t come because it was the thing to do. … You came because she touched your life.”
They also came for closure, to try to make sense of tragedy and to say goodbye properly.
“It’s probably just hit me today, since I came to church,” said Dunnavant, blinking away tears in the back of the church. “It happens to the best of us.”
Gorseth was born 15 minutes from downtown London and became a singer and actress. She performed for the Royal Family as one of the original British cast members in a cabaret showing of “Jesus Christ, Superstar.”
Gorseth sang in front of Lord Snowdon and Princess Margaret and she sang on the QE2. In 1986, she attended a charity-benefit gala, where she stood near Diana, who wore a peach gown and, of course, a smile.
“I was just really happy to see her,” said Gorseth, who moved to Spokane almost seven years ago to be with her new husband. “Her smile made a difference to people.”
When her choir group planned to visit an AIDS unit at Middlesex Hospital in London, many were nervous about the disease. But Diana had just visited the ward.
“She made me be not scared at all,” Gorseth said.
After learning of Diana’s death and all she accomplished in life, Gorseth decided to volunteer at the blood bank. She hopes others will follow Diana’s example.
“If every single person just picked up the phone and gave just two hours a week, there’d be an awful lot of goodness,” Gorseth said.
Many mourners planned to stay up and watch the actual funeral service on TV. Many spoke of Diana in the present tense, as if she’d never left.
Kirk said the princess used her celebrity to accomplish good. She ticked off a list of Diana’s qualities.
“Her caring, her compassion, her concern, her spontaneity,” said Kirk, pausing. “People who needed hugs most, got them.”
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo
MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: COMING SUNDAY Princess Diana’s legacy is as complex as her life was: her kindhearted acts, her glamour and her two sons, one destined to be the king of England. Watch for our special commemorative section - “Queen of Hearts” - coming Sunday in The Spokesman-Review.