[il-talk] Herald News Article Carmen

[George Villa]

Printed in  the Herald News

February 8, 2010 

Loving memories of Carmen





To everything there is a season. A time to be born, a time to die. A time to weep and a time to refrain from weeping. The Sepeda family of Joliet has been experiencing all of these emotions. The Sepedas recently lost their cherished relative, Carmen Sepeda Dennis, who was born in Joliet. My husband had known this remarkable woman since childhood. They attended the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired in Jacksonville. Andrea Robison, an employee at the United Cerebral Palsy of Illinois Prairieland, who was Dennis' niece, was always being teased by my husband that if she didn't behave he would call her aunt to give her a full report. 

Dennis was an advocate extraordinaire for the blind. She was a lifelong member of the National Federation of the Blind. Most importantly, this woman positively impacted the lives of so many people during her brief walk on earth. 

"There was never a person that I knew on this planet that didn't love Carmen," said my husband Rick. The Illinois School for the Blind has an alumni list, and I learned details of Carmen's life that will forever touch my soul. 

Debra Hernstrum wrote, "Carmen means song in Spanish and the song of service is now being sung for eternity. She's sorely missed." 

Dan Thompson, a Joliet native wrote, "I know Carmen is now watching down on us. I felt that Carmen truly understood the struggle against the odds we both shared in our personal lives coming from very challenging childhoods. She showed people how to feel triumphant no matter how small the achievement. When she said she loved you, one could feel the genuine truth in the words. She encouraged those around her to reach for their dreams and never say never. I think of her as an older sister I looked up to. Numerous times she helped me learn how to print my name when she was in high school and probably had much better things to do than hang around with some young kid. She made everyone feel loved and important." 

Dennis' blind friends traveled from all areas of the state to say their final goodbyes. The Sepeda family kept busy picking people up at various times from the train station. Dennis was buried with her National Federation of Blind cane. Undoubtedly when she gazed at God, He said, life well done.