We all deal with grief in our own unique way. Some of us choose to let go completely and move on, while others like to hold on to as much as they can from the person we have lost. There's no right answer on how to react to tragic circumstances, you just have to find out what allows you to continue living your best life.
When someone passes, we want to give them a proper send off, a way for people to remember them as they were in life. However, in the case of Frederick "Lon" Dorsa, it is how his wife chose to remember him that keeps his name forever enshrined.
In March of 1897, his body was found in Nevada, Missouri, with the apparent cause of death being electrocution. Lon was struck by lightning the night before, leaving behind a wife and child.
It was Neva Gibson Dorsa who would bring acclaim to this small town in Missouri. Neva didn't want to spend a day where she couldn't look on her young lovers face, so she set out to make sure she could.
Lon was buried not long after his death, however his wife had plans to make sure she wouldn't forget his likeness, while respecting the dignity she held him to.
A second burial involved a huge piece of marble with a very special addition - a stone bible that could be moved to reveal the face of Lon under a glass pane. For years, Neva would travel to her late husbands graveside and stand there, watching over him.
Eventually, newspapers across the country began reporting on the strange tribute that this dedicated woman had put together, and people began travelling from all over to come see her stand guard over this strange tomb.
Unfortunately, the attention may have driven Neva away from her hometown, and a newspaper report mentions someone of nearly her exact description who remarried and moved to California.
People still find time to stop into the small town of Nevada to check in on Lon, though ever since his tomb was vandalized by a group of teenagers, the town has taken precautions to ensure the site is respected.
