Thank you Brother Komet for the following!
I went to Julie's side today
A celebration of Cesarini's life will be 6 p.m. tonight at Homer United Methodist Church, with a potluck dinner to follow. Friends are invited to bring a favorite dish to share. Cesarini was laid to rest on her Fireweed Lane property Sunday, surrounded by family and friends.
Cesarini died of cancer Oct. 16. She was born Jan. 23, 1939 in Battle Creek, Mich., and grew up in Ann Arbor, Mich., where she later attended college. Her daughter, Juliet Lucia said Cesarini loved to attend classes, a habit she kept up throughout her life.
In 1967, Cesarini vacationed in Alaska with her dad, who brought her here on a fishing trip. She moved to Valdez shortly thereafter, and married a commercial fisherman and had her first child in Glennallen in 1971, daughter Juliet. Glennallen was the closest hospital at the time.
"She had always wanted to live in Homer," Juliet recalled. "Yule Kilcher had put an ad in the paper advertising his 'Kachemak School of Living,' I think that's what it was called. It invited people to come to Homer to see how things were, and how to live off the land. That intrigued my mom."
In 1975, she moved to Homer to raise her son and daughter here. She purchased property off Little Fireweed Lane and in 1978 took her children traveling in a white Ford van for about a year.
"We got all the way down to Key West, Florida with our Alaska license plates," Juliet said.
They returned in 1981, to build a home on the Fireweed property, a house set back from the road about an eighth of a mile. Even in later years, Cesarini would park at the entrance and walk in. The home wasn't connected to city services, it had minimal electricity and was heated by a wood stove because Cesarini liked being self-sufficient. She kept a large garden in the summers.
In the late 1980s, after reading and studying about hemp products, Cesarini established the Rainbow Hemp Farmstead, using mail order to purchase the products. More recently, people might remember meeting Cesarini at the purple bus parked at the Duncan House on Pioneer Avenue. From there she greeted tourists and other visitors, and sold hemp products, flags, blankets and clothing.
"She was very green before it was popular, a bit ahead of her time," Juliet recalled. "She always felt like an agent of change and that it should be acted on a local level."
Cesarini ran for city office several times through the years, at least once for Homer City Council and once for mayor in 2004. She was drawn to public office as a way to bring about change.
"She had strong beliefs as far as recycling and development," Juliet said.
Friend Maka Fairman recalls Cesarini had concerns about the property tax system and wanted to help change policies to a less wasteful system. "She wanted to enlighten people by running for office," Fairman said.
Even in the midst of trying times, such as the death of her son and through her own illness, Cesarini greeted others with kindness and maintained an optimism. "She had such a full life in Homer. She thought the world would be better if we were natural people using natural products. She believed we could all live our own way by feeding ourselves and being self-contained."
Cesarini recognized value in throw-away products and through the years "collected everything," Fairman said. "It upset her to see people waste. She felt like everything could be recycled - there is a use for everything and nothing should be tossed out. She was into recycling everything."
After her children were grown, Cesarini traveled with the "Rainbow Tribe," a group of people who toured the country spreading the message of peace and love. One of her favorite pieces of writing was the "Desiderata," which talks about how one should live a life.
"I realized (she) followed it, she lived those words of advice," Fairman said. "She would say, 'Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.' She would always say it with a smile. Her own heart might be breaking but she would have this sweet smile on her face."
If friends wish to place flowers on Cesarini's grave, they may do so.
I went to Julie's side today
she lay there asleep, kinda crumpled into her pillow
she started when she heard me trying to be silent
I stood there being centered
I didn't know what to do beyond that
found no call to affect her Path at this point
I went to Bishop;s beach to cry more
feeling teathered to this earth
wanting to fly high above all of this
with her, you and us.
Lost time
with her, you and us.
Lost time
It has been fading for weeks
So slowly I could barley detect it
The edges of the periphery has fuzzed
It is time to go to center
To exclude all that was
Be in the diminishing now
Pardon me but I cannot do what you wish
The V for vigil was only the next room
A calling in away from the past
To be there to be here now
Please understand the time the moment
The next marker appearing vaugly is a week from now
Please only speak what is essential & primal
All external systems down all acess depleated
Beloved Homer woman passes on
Julie Cesarini spoke her truth quietly
October 22, 2008
Homer lost a beloved character last week in Julie Cesarini, a woman who helped define the town and area as a haven for
people wanting to live in nature and give back to the earth, though not wasting its resources.
A celebration of Cesarini's life will be 6 p.m. tonight at Homer United Methodist Church, with a potluck dinner to follow. Friends are invited to bring a favorite dish to share. Cesarini was laid to rest on her Fireweed Lane property Sunday, surrounded by family and friends.
Cesarini died of cancer Oct. 16. She was born Jan. 23, 1939 in Battle Creek, Mich., and grew up in Ann Arbor, Mich., where she later attended college. Her daughter, Juliet Lucia said Cesarini loved to attend classes, a habit she kept up throughout her life.
In 1967, Cesarini vacationed in Alaska with her dad, who brought her here on a fishing trip. She moved to Valdez shortly thereafter, and married a commercial fisherman and had her first child in Glennallen in 1971, daughter Juliet. Glennallen was the closest hospital at the time.
"She had always wanted to live in Homer," Juliet recalled. "Yule Kilcher had put an ad in the paper advertising his 'Kachemak School of Living,' I think that's what it was called. It invited people to come to Homer to see how things were, and how to live off the land. That intrigued my mom."
In 1975, she moved to Homer to raise her son and daughter here. She purchased property off Little Fireweed Lane and in 1978 took her children traveling in a white Ford van for about a year.
"We got all the way down to Key West, Florida with our Alaska license plates," Juliet said.
They returned in 1981, to build a home on the Fireweed property, a house set back from the road about an eighth of a mile. Even in later years, Cesarini would park at the entrance and walk in. The home wasn't connected to city services, it had minimal electricity and was heated by a wood stove because Cesarini liked being self-sufficient. She kept a large garden in the summers.
In the late 1980s, after reading and studying about hemp products, Cesarini established the Rainbow Hemp Farmstead, using mail order to purchase the products. More recently, people might remember meeting Cesarini at the purple bus parked at the Duncan House on Pioneer Avenue. From there she greeted tourists and other visitors, and sold hemp products, flags, blankets and clothing.
"She was very green before it was popular, a bit ahead of her time," Juliet recalled. "She always felt like an agent of change and that it should be acted on a local level."
Cesarini ran for city office several times through the years, at least once for Homer City Council and once for mayor in 2004. She was drawn to public office as a way to bring about change.
"She had strong beliefs as far as recycling and development," Juliet said.
Friend Maka Fairman recalls Cesarini had concerns about the property tax system and wanted to help change policies to a less wasteful system. "She wanted to enlighten people by running for office," Fairman said.
Even in the midst of trying times, such as the death of her son and through her own illness, Cesarini greeted others with kindness and maintained an optimism. "She had such a full life in Homer. She thought the world would be better if we were natural people using natural products. She believed we could all live our own way by feeding ourselves and being self-contained."
Cesarini recognized value in throw-away products and through the years "collected everything," Fairman said. "It upset her to see people waste. She felt like everything could be recycled - there is a use for everything and nothing should be tossed out. She was into recycling everything."
After her children were grown, Cesarini traveled with the "Rainbow Tribe," a group of people who toured the country spreading the message of peace and love. One of her favorite pieces of writing was the "Desiderata," which talks about how one should live a life.
"I realized (she) followed it, she lived those words of advice," Fairman said. "She would say, 'Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.' She would always say it with a smile. Her own heart might be breaking but she would have this sweet smile on her face."
If friends wish to place flowers on Cesarini's grave, they may do so.
