It’s just something else that was awful during the pandemic, the Zoom funeral. I didn’t feel like writing an obit at the time to list our mother Sarah Jane Lind’s many achievements, and the numerous arts she supported (Architecture CityLab at UCLA, Music Academy, SBCC, Santa Barbara Symphony, Santa Barbara Opera, the Granada, etc.)

We held an outdoor gathering in the cold, photos pasted inside on sliding glass doors looking out. People called in their regrets, of course, but Monique Limón and family came by, and Barbara Ben Horin, a few friends in the arts.

The family was present: my sister from Chicago, her son Shannon and wife Usha, and their son Avi; her daughter Hannah and husband Pete and two daughters Leaf and Joni; and my daughter Adrienne from New York was there.

We didn’t need to speak about her years as one of two female real estate developers in Los Angeles; everyone already knew. She was a patron of the arts, a friend to the young, a champion of women’s equality. We had leftover food we gave away.

Mom’s estate provided a charitable bequest; many organizations have benefitted.

Something our mother would have adored: We helped buy a used fire truck for Hermosa Beach to send to its sister city, Loreto, Baja California. I went there to celebrate its arrival, after a 14-hour drive and much border-related protocol.

We made pizza in the firehouse and bought a new stove for a children’s group home, made pizza with the kids. We were taken to the islands and up to try to see the cave art up near Mulege; but of course, the road is perennially washed out from hurricanes. Some things I’m destined to see on YouTube — I’ve tried before and been washed out.

The Fire Department drove us around town in the truck and couldn’t thank us enough. No fewer than 14 of my classmates lost everything in the Palisades Fire. Mom’s house was partially burned in Jesusita. Her last road trip was with her caregiver and dog to a motel in San Luis Obispo to evacuate.

She would absolutely love that the fire truck was named after her and her name shines in gold letters on it.