GALVESTON COUNTY, Texas (WTEN/KTRK) — An obituary for a Texas man has gone viral, but not because of the kind words that were written about his life.
The woman who wrote the obituary decided it was best to be brutally honest about her father.
The obituary has been so popular, it actually crashed the funeral home’s website. The daughter says she has no regrets.
“Leslie Ray Charping was born in Galveston, Texas on Nov. 20, 1942, and passed away Jan. 30, 2017,” Sheila Smith, Leslie’s daughter, said.
It starts out like most obituaries.
“Which was 29 years longer than expected and much longer than he deserved,” Smith continued.
But, quickly takes a turn.
“I told the truth,” Smith told KTRK. “I am not sorry for telling the truth and I am not sorry for standing up for myself.”
Charping wasn’t a good man. He has served time in prison and was, by several accounts, both physically and verbally abusive. His daughter, Smith, says she couldn’t bear to lie about it.
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“For someone that knew him and family members that knew him, and to see something on there was a complete lie, would’ve been an insult to everyone that he did bad things to and there was a lot of them,” Smith explains. “I couldn’t write that in good conscience because it’s not going to bring closure to anyone or to myself.”
The obituary has gone viral, getting so much attention. Smith says supervisors at work have asked her not to respond. That’s why her face is hidden, but not her words.
“When you don’t talk about it and you don’t acknowledge the problem even exists, it just grows,” Smith said. “It’s not going to stop until people say this is a problem and they talk about it. No services will be held, there will be no prayers for eternal peace and no apologizes to the family he tortured. Leslie’s remains will be cremated and kept in the barn until ‘Ray,’ the family donkey’s wood shavings run out.”
In case you were wondering, yes, Smith is paying for her father’s cremation, and no, Charping didn’t have insurance.WHAT OTHERS ARE CLICKING ON RIGHT NOW
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