Roadside memorials

[Pete]

Yesterday I saw the roadside memorial next to Wildewood for the woman who got killed when she ran a red light and tangled with a cement truck. I have noticed numerous memorials here in SOMD, many more than anywhere else. Is this a SOMD thing? I have seen a few around the country but not the number there are here.

 

[RoseRed]

Look here

and here

 

[Sharon]

Those stupid memorials used to not bother me, but now they're everywhere. They're distracting and I hate them. It's more litter than a stupid ciggy butt out the window. :razz2: How come no one complains about that?

 

[justhangn]

Originally posted by kwillia
Speaking of which... when are we gonna put up the Bluto memorial?

Like he's not reading this.

 

[StillCrazy]

Originally posted by dpete2q
I have noticed numerous memorials here in SOMD, many more than anywhere else. Is this a SOMD thing? ...

Take a drive to the eastern shore - route 301 to 404 thru Delaware. Starting in Delaware, there's one or more white crosses every few miles. More than fifty total - I think. At one spot there are seven. Don't know if that was a family heading to the beach or just a crash-prone site.

The memorials are good reminders of what can happen if you're reckless. But I'd prefer not to have them.

 

[giggles04]

Re: Re: Roadside memorials

Originally posted by StillCrazy

The memorials are good reminders of what can happen if you're reckless. But I'd prefer not to have them.

You're right... they are good reminders of what can happen if you're reckless. A girl I knew was killed when she fell asleep behind the wheel a couple years ago... and I think about that everytime I pass by the cross her parents put up on Route 5. And then, we put up a cross on Route 5 (St. Mary's students) for the 2 guys that were killed in an accident back in March. It is a reminder of what can happen if we're not responsible. I don't mind them... but that's just me. And I think that families have a right to put something there as long as the owners of that property don't mind.

 

[yardsalequeen]

I think Southern Maryland just has more than their share of bad drivers - hence the numerous roadside memorials. "Roadside memorials" is a nice term for it - I generally call it a shrine o'crap cuz after a week, the stuff looks just all dirty and is just an eyesore to me.

 

[willie]

memorials

 

[Dymphna]

The first roadside memorial I ever saw was about 25 years ago. At the time they were a novelty and the family took care of this one for years. About the time the "Adopt a Road" program came out, there were memorials all over and no one paid attention anyway, so the family "adopted" that stretch of road in the name "Friends and family of..." I thought that was a better gesture than cheesy plastic flowers.

 

[willie]

Originally posted by cmcdanal
The first roadside memorial I ever saw was about 25 years ago. At the time they were a novelty and the family took care of this one for years. About the time the "Adopt a Road" program came out, there were memorials all over and no one paid attention anyway, so the family "adopted" that stretch of road in the name "Friends and family of..." I thought that was a better gesture than cheesy plastic flowers.

That is what they did on Rousby Hall Road but the only people I see picking up litter is the Dept. of Corrections.

 

[Elle]

I think they are very tacky. But then again I've never lost a loved one to an accident on the road. The one at Chaney is especially out of control. I small cross with a little flower is nice but this one has the large funeral flowers there and all. It's like a 6 foot by 6 ft memorial at the corner of the road.

Hubby works there and I went to visit him there yesterday. When I was pulling out to go north on 235, I couldn't even see what was coming in the South bound lane. I know I don't need to look at that lane to make a right hand turn out of there but what if I were making a left hand turn to go south, I'd like to see what was coming so we didn't have a repeat accident of last week. I know this isn't a problem for the guys in the big trucks to see over this eyesore but fore me in my car it wasn't possible.

 

[vraiblonde]

Do people in other states do this or is it just Maryland? A girl in my son's class killed herself on a stretch of road coming to school. Her female classmates were keening and wailing like this girl was their best friend. They set up this enormous memorial on the side of the road, too. When I asked Doug about it, he informed me that most of those girls barely knew Leah.

Death bandwagon. Kinda freaky.

 

[vraiblonde]

Originally posted by cariblue
I never saw roadside memorials before I came here.

Neither did I - that's why I asked. But I've lived most of my adult life in Maryland so I wouldn't know about other states. My Mom acted like she'd never seen one before, either, so maybe they don't do that in Nebraska?

 

[yoddle]

Originally posted by vraiblonde
Neither did I - that's why I asked. But I've lived most of my adult life in Maryland so I wouldn't know about other states. My Mom acted like she'd never seen one before, either, so maybe they don't do that in Nebraska?

And now that I think about it, I don't know if I'd myself want to be reminded of the tradgedy every time I pass the site. I dunno its hard to think about but I would want a nicer place to remember and think about the person.

 

[Hello6]

Since the Midwest was mentioned, I know that in South Dakota they post "THINK....WHY DIE" road signs at accident sites for every death on the spot.
No tacky mylar baloons deflating slowly over time, no stuffed bears or toys getting more and more disgusting as the weather destroys them. on roadside memorials.
I don't think I could ever go by the spot where I lost a loved one or friend and not be reminded of the gaping hole left in my life that they once filled. Roadside memorials cry "look at me and how sad I am that I've lost somebody. I'm so dedicated to their memory that I'll spend a few bucks on cheesy fake flowers and a little cross." They just want attention for themselves.

 

[Kain99]

Originally posted by Hello6
"look at me and how sad I am that I've lost somebody. I'm so dedicated to their memory that I'll spend a few bucks on cheesy fake flowers and a little cross." They just want attention for themselves.

Wow... Not sure what to say except maybe, Crap! That's a crummy thing to say and a scary way to think.

 

[vraiblonde]

Originally posted by Kain99
That's a crummy thing to say and a scary way to think.

Why? I agree wholeheartedly with Hello. I've always thought that there are some people who use a loved one's death to garner attention for themselves. Roadside memorials prove this pretty well, I think.

 

[yoddle]

Originally posted by Hello6
Since the Midwest was mentioned, I know that in South Dakota they post "THINK....WHY DIE" road signs at accident sites for every death on the spot.
No tacky mylar baloons deflating slowly over time, no stuffed bears or toys getting more and more disgusting as the weather destroys them. on roadside memorials.
I don't think I could ever go by the spot where I lost a loved one or friend and not be reminded of the gaping hole left in my life that they once filled. Roadside memorials cry "look at me and how sad I am that I've lost somebody. I'm so dedicated to their memory that I'll spend a few bucks on cheesy fake flowers and a little cross." They just want attention for themselves.

I think this is exactly what I was trying to say. ha ha

Thanks.

 

[Dymphna]

Originally posted by Hello6
I'm so dedicated to their memory that I'll spend a few bucks on cheesy fake flowers and a little cross." They just want attention for themselves.

When I lived in Baltimore, a woman I worked with was killed by a drunk driver in Northern Baltimore County. Her half sisters, who she didn't get along with (actually they couldn't stand each other) put up a memorial. My boss went with them, since she was a close friend to the dead woman. She said the sisters were all laughing and joking around with a video camera (they were taping the dedication for the grandparents) literally saying, "Look at us" while they danced around the site of their sister's death. Tell me, what's the point of the memorial if not to say "poor little me, my sister's dead"

 

[blacklabman]

I saw them in Montana when I started hunting out there more than 20 years ago. They were not in SOMD at that time.