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Celian "Buck" Adams at Rest On June 17, 2020, Celian got into his wheelchair as he did every day, hoping to get outdoors to check things out on the old Ranch place. But he started feeling weak, and that afternoon, he had difficulty breathing. That night at the hospital, his prognosis was congestive heart failure - his tired old body was worn out and would not last much longer. Back home at his beloved Ranch on the mountain, he rested in bed as family members arrived from across the country to spend some time with him.
Father's Day 2020: Glorianna, baby Wyatt, Betty, Celian, Lanita, Linda & Freddie. Daniel was behind the camera.
His 100th birthday was near, and he requested a chocolate birthday cake, even though he could eat only a few bites.
Celian enjoyed getting out in his golf cart in recent years as it got harder for him to drive his tractors and old cars.
He took Betty to check out the garden one last time before being stuck in bed.
Only a year before, the family enjoyed a Mother's Day breakfast together at nearby Finnon Lake. In 2020, because of the Coronavirus pandemic, they got take-out food from Frank's Diner and ate their Mother's Day breakfast at home.
The Adams family served at Colegio Linda Vista (now a university) in the mountains of south Mexico between 1958 and 1997, and returned multiple times for short visits and reunions. In 2013 they enjoyed seeing many old friends, and it was their last time together there as a family.
Having grown up in a Christian family and volunteered many years in mission service, Celian felt that his rebellious teen years disqualified him from meeting God's high standards. At age 12 he wanted to be baptized, but his well-meaning parents told him he wasn't "good enough" yet, so he put it off. Eventually he realized that he could never be "good enough," that Jesus has paid the price for his sins, and his part was to accept the gift of salvation. Still he waited until 2014, when at age 94, he was baptized in the Eel River among the redwoods in northern California.
He enjoyed keeping his old cars running, including this 1930 Model A Ford Roadster he bought as a teenager. This 2016 photo shows five generations of the Adams family.
When he couldn't do the work himself, friends helped with repair work.
In 2018, he climbed into his one-of-a-kind woodsplitter and drove it - his last time driving a motor vehicle.
Being a woodsman most of his life, he used many chainsaws cutting trees, lumber and firewood. In his later years, he sat on the ground and cut trees. Recently, he was happy just to hold a chainsaw on his lap, checking the gas, oil, chain tightness and sharpness.
He also enjoyed tending his garden and always had extra produce to share.
He spent many happy hours at the piano, trying to play pieces he'd learned as a child, and learning new ones as well. His dad was a musician, piano teacher and composer.
In January 2020, we got one last nice family photo together.
On May 22, 2020, Celian was still splitting kindling with his hatchet.
On July 1, 2020, Betty and Celian remembered their 66 years of married life together - and how they eloped to Flagstaff, Arizona to get married!
Daughter Linda and wife Betty were by his side nearly all the time as his mind and body gradually went downhill. Then after being stuck in bed for nearly two weeks, Celian said, "Lets go!" So with Victor's help, he got in his wheelchair and he got to be outdoors and see his beloved Ranch place in the hills.
Another day, he went even further, getting one last look at his bulldozer, which served the family well for nearly 60 years.
On July 8, just 10 days before completing his 100th year, Celian stopped breathing. While we miss him greatly, we are thankful that he is asleep, no longer suffering, nor frustrated because he couldn't do the things he wanted. We are grateful for the hope we have in the resurrection when Jesus comes to take His children to their permanent home!
On July 18, 2020 a group of family members and a few friends gathered to celebrate his life. It would have been his 100th birthday, but he is now asleep, and to him it will be like only a moment until he rises with a new body, full of youth and vigor!
"For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the
voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ
will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up
together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we
shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these
words."
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