Dear Dad,
Here I sit at your bedside all alone,
watching you as you lay comfortably numb, fighting your final battle.
Today is the day we dreaded, but knew someday we all will have to go through
at some point in our lives.
I know you are fighting now,
and I know you have fought very hard for us.
I know you wanted to be around longer in this life,
to be with your family and Mom.
I know this is not the way you wanted it to end.
But I pray that you are at peace as you lay here taking each labored breath.
I don’t want you to suffer any longer.
We can’t prolong the inevitable,
your body is just too weak, your lungs are too weak and your heart is tired.
You were given a body to carry your soul and now it’s time to let it go.
You had a great life, you used this body well!!
You are an amazing Dad!!!
You’ve always been there for me,
You always forgave me,
you always guided me,
you offered advice to me.
You always know what’s best.
Father knows best.
You would do anything for me,
for any of us kids,
for our Mother your beloved wife,
your grandchildren, and for anyone that you loved.
You have done so much in your lifetime.
You have always provided for us.
We always had food on the table, clothes, Christmas presents
and you and Mom always made sure all of our Birthdays were celebrated.
You are the strongest man I know.
You are an amazing Dad!!!
I grew up watching you do so many home improvement projects,
you taught me how to paint,
you let me help refinish dressers for my new “big girl” bedroom.
You forgave me for the few nights I missed my curfew,
even when you grounded me,
you would conveniently forget the next day.
I remember walking in a really late missed curfew.
The house was dark but there you sat taking a drag of your cigarette.
All I could see was the red glow.
You calmly got up and said
“You’re late. We’ll talk about it in the morning.”
And nothing was said. But I sure fretted those next few hours.
I guess that was punishment enough.
You are an amazing Dad!!!
You gave me the love of rollercoasters! And Fast rides, round and round, up high, backwards forwards.
Remember when we went on Titan? You were 68 years old and you rode the Titan!!
I remember 4th of Julys in Lincoln.
You would take me with you to go buy fireworks.
We’d come back to the house and you would dump the booty onto the table
and be so proud of the grand amount of fireworks!
Lighting the sparklers!
I can still see you with Kerry and Eddie, lighting the big ones. Laughing!
My nightly ritual for the early years.
You made me a glass of Tang and brought it to me,
You tucked me in, let me drink my Tang and kissed me goodnight.
You are an amazing Dad!!!
Spending countless nights patiently helping me with those darn
Math word problems, fractions and decimals.
I’m sure my manager wishes I paid better attention then!
When I failed my first driving test because I couldn’t parallel park.
You spent the following Sunday teaching me to parallel park.
Hours of frustration for both of us, but you were patient.
I could finally do it with my eyes close. I Passed my test,
but now I’m sorry to say, I can’t do it with my eyes open.
You are an amazing Dad!!!
Always willing to take a risk.
The big one—moving us to Texas and leaving the rest of our family behind.
Always seeing you smile and be happy—and laugh.
You enjoyed being around people. You cherished your friends and good times!!!
You passed that love on to me.
I surround myself with great friends.
My life isn’t complete without all of my friends.
You allowed me to drive a car 3 blocks to school every day,
and understating why it was important to me.
Letting me take my own risks, learning from my mistakes,
but supporting and guiding me through it.
I hear Joy and Chris talk about the memories that stand out to them—
“No elbows on the table.”
Seeing you with little Amy on your shoulders! You were so proud to be a grandpa!
Seeing you play in the snow on Starr Street.
Grilling ! You grilled back then between the two houses – with Bob and Helen
Twirly birds
Riding a tricycle
Riding the bike down Indian Road.
We will never forget that.
Chris said you kissed her good night every night and she couldn’t go to sleep without your kiss!
And one of the best memories we have was just in December
when we celebrated Joy, Kerry and Andrew’s birthdays.
You had a couple of margaritas and you were feeling frisky.
We all gathered around the dining room table as gifts were opened.
You started to tell stories.
You were a story teller that’s for sure.
You talked about the Santa sleigh marks on the roof on the green house,
that special Christmas Eve where it was believed that Santa really did land his sleigh and reindeer.
You weren’t sure how the heck those marks got there.
Then you told us about the time Mom was pregnant with Kerry that story is priceless.
So was the margarita getting dumped all over Jeff’s cake.
And we were lucky enough to capture those stories on video.
It was a glimpse of the Dad,
the Jerry,
that we have known all of our lives!!
And how priceless these stories are for Kerry and Joy.
You couldn’t have given them a better birthday gift!
You are an amazing Dad!!!
We have been blessed with a special man
who is an incredibly wonderful loving father,
devoted husband
and great friend to many people.
So here I am contemplating the last 43 years of my life,
sitting by you and praying.
I’m glad that I’m alone right now because I am crying.
This could be our final night with you.
I think about all of these great memories that I have of you,
that my sisters and brother have of you.
I pray that you are at peace,
and whenever you are ready to fly with the angels and watch over us,
know that we will be okay.
We will take care of Momma,
we will always take care of each other.
We will carry on the legacy you left us.
You have given us so much.
You have enriched our lives.
Please don’t be scared.
You are a brave man.
You are a strong man.
You are an amazing Dad!!!
I love you DADDY!
Your daughter, Annette.