My dearest son Eric, yesterday was your birthday and I found myself surrounded by love.
Your sister wrote "today is Eric's birthday and I was thinking about that laugh of his and how contagious it was! He could walk into a room and have everyone laughing within 10 seconds of entering".
Your brother Sonny wrote "Mom, I told Eric Happy birthday at 3:30 this morning "
Your brother Jeff said"yes, it seems like he was always laughing and you call me tonight mom if you have trouble falling asleep ".
Your aunt Jerrie wrote"the angels are. Celebrating today and one fine day we will all be celebrating together,Praise God."
Your soul mate came and spent the day with me. We watched a movie together that made you laugh and we both felt your presence and your love right there with us. We all have so much to be thankful and grateful for my son. You are always missed and never forgotten. Until we meet again
       Mom

Hey there Eric...I often leave a note here and there to people that aren't with us anymore, thinking that there's a possibility that they can somehow hear me. I'm hoping that's true with you. Another year has went by... that doesn't mean I forgot you. I think about you quite often and hope that wherever you are you are at peace and you're happy. Nothing has really changed since you went away, the only difference is that you're not here to share it with us, which is sad. Life goes on day by day but the memory of you still is a bright spot.
Love you Eric.
Till we meet again.
Mamma Kathy

My dearest son, another Thanksgiving without you. I give thanks for the wonderful years we had together on this earth. We love you and are in our thoughts daily. Until we meet again. Your family

Hi son,just want to say I love you and miss you. Thinking of you many times daily. Until we meet again....Mom

09/12/23
My dearest son, today is the 2nd anniversary of your passing on to the next step of your journey.
This morning my dear friend told me you will soon be together forever, and Eric even though the pain of missing you never subsides, I want you to know those words were so very comforting to me as I believe them to be true.
My sister said Eric doesn't want you to be sad.I know he is happy in paradise with our Lord and Savior. Those words were also very comforting to me.
We had a wonderful relationship for 50 years son.You brought me so much joy. I will always love you and will remain eternally grateful for the time we had together. Until we meet again    Your Mom

Hi son
Just wan to send a quick message to tell you how much I miss you.
And I know now that you're with me all the time. I also know we never die. I love you and realize why you chose your path.What a wonderful soul you are. Mom

My dearest son Eric
Tomorrow will be March 4th, the day of your birth.7. Each and every person seems to have grown in love and in wisdom. I now believe we know when we lose a love one there is no goodbye as death is not final. You are with us all and watching over us.
We will honor you tomorrow with a birthday dinner and even a cake with your name. I know you will be with us and your wish will be for us to be happy and loving while we continue our journeys on this earth. There is so much comfort in knowing there are no miles to separate us and there is no longer a time frame to keep us apart. God has a wonderful plan for us all. I love you son and I know we will be together again soon.  Mom

January 1st, 2023
Hello my dearest Eric.
Today would have been yours and Jeanette's anniversary.
You had 13 wonderful years together with a few minor ups and downs. I challenge most marriages to be a solid as yours was.
Not only were you loved by your family and your wife, but you were loved by her family as well and I always thought of you as my son.
I still do. It is hard to believe that you've been gone for almost a year and a half now as it seems like just yesterday I was talking to you and laughing about something corny.
If you are looking down on us please know we think of you constantly and miss you.
You will always be my cowboy.
Love Mom

My dearest Eric ,
One year ago today we said our final good bye to you.Thank God he had a much bigger plan for human kind than just goodbye. My heart aches every day with gratitude for the time we had together. With that gratitude comes peace and comfort knowing you are still with me in my heart
I recently opened the front door early in the morning and a beam of sunshine landed directly on your picture. Last week I observed a hummingbird in the front yard hovering in mid air outside the door.
Sometimes a butterfly will land near me or I will spot a feather on the ground. I believe all these things are signs from Heaven letting me know you are near and at peace .
We love and miss you so very much
Eric. Until we meet again , Mom and Jeff .

Well my love, one year ago today at 12;27 I watched you take your last breath. That was the hardest day of my life. The only peace I get is knowing you are no long suffering and you never have to hurt again. I miss you every single day. My heart will never heal. There are so many things that happen and like always your the first one I want to call. You remember when I said I don't need to be with you, I want to be with you. Well I need you and your not here and I feel so lonely and the thing is your the only one that can fill that void . I kept busy all last month camping in our van that you only got to camp in once and I think how unfair it is that I get to enjoy it and you don't. You worked so very hard providing for your family and making sure that when you retired we could travel and live comfortable and enjoy being grandparents. It's not fair that you don't get to enjoy that part.. I'm sad that Elijah doesn't get to have both his nana and papa together. He loves you so much and I'm grateful that he was alreast old enough that he will always have memories of you and he knows exactly who papa is...  I miss you so much Eric Heidi all your things are where you left them . Well except for your shirt drawer, I kind of took that over ( that's prime real state in a 5th wheel ) I can just hear you chuckling. I watch your videos and get to hear your voice and your heart laugh. My fav is you and Eli at the river in a nija stick fight and he wacks you one real good and you let out a yell and Elijah thinks it's hilarious (because your laught so hard and hes a boy) and he starts to come after you again disregarding your protest. You both were laughing and having so much fun.. I have laughed more and had more joy in the ALMOST 13 yrs we spent together than the other 37. I thank you for making a beautiful life with me , being my protector, choosing to make your family first ,never miss treating me in word or action and for loving me so deeply. Thank you for showing me how to relax and enjoy life and that its ok to let that inner child come out and play and be goofy. Thank you for loving me, just the way I am cracks and all. Thank you showing me that life doesn't have to hurt and my heart was safe with you and I didn't need my walls. Thank you for all that you gave of yourself selflessly. I cherish our family and my life with you..
Until that day comes and you hear Jesus voice calling you to wake from your sleep I will cherish our time and memories together.. you are and will always be my sunshine!! Love your Wifey

Hello Eric, how's my cowboy....
It has been 12 months on this day since you left us and there's not a day that goes by that I don't think of you. I look back on all those years and think I did not spend enough time with you because I always thought there was going to be more time. Little did I know that you were going to leave way before I was ready to say goodbye. You were such a positive light in my life and my daughter's life and there will be no way to ever replace you. You were truly one of a kind Eric. I don't know if I ever told you that, or enough, but I want to tell you now and hope that somehow you can hear me.
I love you Eric, and I miss you, you will always have a place in my heart.
Love Mom

From his first smile he had the ability to light up the room. He was able to see humor in every situation, but never at the expense of hurting anyone. When he worked as a bartender he made everyone feel important. Not only for a good tip, but because he cared for others.
When I was in the car with him he often made me want to sing. " Nearer My God to Thee " and I got my exercise by hitting the brakes.
I admired his work ethics.As a supervisor he would always treat others as his equal..I have been honored to be his Aunt Beth

My precious Eric. Today is bittersweet for me as this is your birthday. My world has changed since September 12th . So many things I took for granted have now become blessings. So many times I was quick to criticize others I now find myself feeling humble as I have come to realize that Love truly is the most important thing in the world.
I honor you on this day my son as you taught me there are many more aspects of love which I never fully understood.
I miss you every hour of every day and I am so thankful for the time we had together. You showed me immeasurable happiness that extends far beyond this world. Until we meet again my son. Moo (Mom)

I love you dad. I will always remember what you taught me and how to be a man. I am not happy about our last conversation but i know there were a million more that didn't end like that. I'm trying my best to go through this life without you. Hopefully I'm making you proud. You were the best dad i could ever ask for. All those memories good and bad. Even some ugly. But your the man i aspire to be. I hope you have a great day with Denise and Grandpa. Happy birthday pops-a-daliano.
Your son.

Eric was one of the people who played a major role in my life. He was there when I found out I was going to be a father and was the first to know. I remember just being stunned ( As him and I were in the middle of working on a job site ).
I was balling my eyes out as Eric was doing his iconic laugh asking me :
Eric: “ What’s wrong big guy?”
Me: “ Stephanie is pregnant!”
Eric : “ Well congratulations!”
Me: “ What?!?!?! NO DUDE!”
Eric: “ Well , why are you so upset?”
Me: “ Im not ready to be a father, I need to prepare myself better.”
Eric: “ Well you got couple hours before we head home to prepare!” ( Eric dying of laughter exhaustion)

Man how you forced me to face life head on and no matter how pinned up I felt you had the wisdom to explain how to grow from opportunity no matter if it was positive or negative.
I cherished the time we spent together as I always knew each interaction was special and meaningful.
The sun rises in the east,
Settles in the west,
I miss you dearly my friend,
I will see you again,
When I too rest.

Happy birthday papa bear.

My dad introduced me to Eric in 1985. He was always laughing and smiling.     Recently my dad told me Eric had contracted covid. I had not intended to get vaccinated, but as a result of his contracting the virus, I went and received the vaccinations and booster shots. Last week I contracted covid and had minimal discomfort and fully recovered. Thank you Eric and my loving husband for motivating me to vaccinate. I still can't believe Eric is gone. I will always be grateful to you!

Eric will be missed dearly, when I think of him, its his laugh i loved most. As a young boy he would often spend weekends at our 14 acre piece of paradise. One weekend he and his cousin Ron went out to feed the animals for me, they both came running back into the house saying "aunt Bonnie, there's something out there and its not Libra " (our springer spaniel). So I grabbed the rifle and all three of us went out to finish up the chores. I kidded them a wee bit, but a week later, a cougar tore apart the rabbit cages and I was so grateful that nothing happened to the boys. I can picture Eric in my mind laughing and smiling. His memory will always be with me til we meet again. Love you, aunt Bonnie

Eric was a rare gem... he was a most kind and gentle man.... he has a most kind and gentle son that reminds me so much of him... and he adored his wife...it is hard for me to believe he is no longer here.
Eric was first in line to help with a smile and generous to a fault. 
He had bought a car to drive to work to save money on gas instead of using his truck. While buying groceries one day he spotted a homeless man with a teenage son. The man said he had found work but didn't have transportation. Eric gave him that car.
Now that turned our to be a negative experience for Eric and Jeanette....but that he was willing to give his car away to someone in need, that he didn't know, speaks volumes about his character.
When I was rehabbing from back surgery my daughter Jeanett and Eric were helping me out by going down to the barn every night to care for my horse. Sometimes just Eric. When I was able to go down myself he still 'had' to come along and wouldn't let me do anything...he even insisted on bringing the horse in from the field himself because (and with that booming joyful laugh of his) "I am now a Cowboy"

I love you Eric. You will be my Cowboy forever.

I Love you very much. I know you gave your life over to our heavenly father
long ago in faith, and now you are with Him. I look forward to seeing your loving smile in paradise. as always, Aunt Jerrie

Eric was my youngest brother and one of the most important people in my life, I know that he would have been deeply moved to see each and every person that showed up in support of him and all of us as a family. For those of you that don't know me, I am Vernon. Eric and I became very close.I loved having him as a brother more than anything else in life.
I've tried to protect Eric as though he was my own son and it is incredibly painful to be here letting him go. Even though Eric was taken from us too soon, I know that I will see him again soon. He lived a full and happy life, one that touched the hearts of so many people. I take comfort in knowing that his legacy will live on through the lives of so many others.
One of the greatest highlights of my life was when I presented Eric with an opportunity to leave Portland and come build Powerlines with me. Eric thought about it for awhile and decided why not, so he rounded up his son Damian and wife Jeannette and moved in with me in Phoenix.
For the first time of my life, I was able to be a part of his life! Eric was an extremely hard worker and it didn't take him long to advance in the industry. He would welcome any task assigned to him with a posative attitude. On one of our projects we stayed together in my trailer. The one thing that I always admired about Eric is that he always looked out for his big brother. My job could be very stressful at times having the role of a Superintendent. More often than not, I would drink beer after work to unwind and decompress from the day and sometimes wouldn't eat or eat something unhealthy and go to bed. Eric recognized this extremly unhealthy life style I had developed and started making it a point to prepare a very nurishing meal for us. He would make me this huge plate of food with vegitables and healthy protiens and make me sit down with him and eat. You see, it was Eric that was watching over me not the other way around. Eric made alot of friends in the Powerline Industry. Many of the friends he made were mutual friends. Numerious friends that were friends with Eric reached out to me with their condolences. Most of them had messages they wanted shared about Eric and the posative impact he made in their lives, too many for me to post. I felt compeled to share a few of their messages however because I feel it is important for other voices to be heardas well.
The first message reads " Eric, from the first time that I had met you when we went to the Union Hall to get sworn inn, I knew that I had met a genuine good hearted man.A few months into our first job together we became great friends on the job and off the job. I will never forget the road trip we mwde to Iowa that changed my life forever. You always made sure I had a smile on my face and if not, you would say something that would make me laugh. To me, I will always remember your laugh as Donald Duck! You were one of a kind and I will never forget you buddy, rest in peace and much love." Another person wrote," Eric was the guy that would always help me see the good through all of the bad. He was very humble and happy no matter what the conditions were. Sometimes it was extreme heat and others extreme rain, wind, ice and cold but he would be always be there and do whatever was asked of him. He has definetly left an empty place in alot of peoples lives, myself included! I loved Eric, he was a great man and made me laugh when no one else could and now he made me cry!" I would like to share a couple of poems with you that set in deeply for me and I am sure they will have an impact on you as well. The first poem reads, "God saw you getting tired, and a cure was not to be. So he put His arms around you and whispered, "Come with Me." With tearful eyes we watched you slowly fade away. Although we loved you dearly, we would not make you stay. A golden heart stopped beating, your hard- working hands put to rest, God broke our hearts to prove to us He only takes the best." This next one I wanted to share is In Loving Memory, I miss you always Brother! " My heart has been left broken Since the day you had to go And the memories I treasure dearly Are in the tears that still flow You're in my thoughts everyday And that's how it will always be For you may be up in Heaven now But you'll always be with me If only I could have the chance To see your face once more Or hear your voice one final time Just like it was before The day that Heaven calls for me Will be a relief from all this pain I'll run to you with open arms And we will meet again!" I miss you so very deeply Eric, you have left a huge hole in my heart that will take a long time to heal if it ever does. God bless you Eric, I miss you so very much!
 

It is impossible to put into words the thoughts and feelings I have in my heart but with Gods gift of humility I will try. In memory of my father I had always wished for a red haired child. Having finished my nursing program in February, I gave birth to my son on March 4th, 1971.A 9 lb 1 oz red headed baby boy. Watching him grow I felt so blessed as there was so much joy and so little sadness. He had an amazing propensity for bonding with everyone he came into contact with. His wonderful sense of humor , kind heart and positive attitude remained steadfast over the next 50 years..
Rest well my son for I know you are safe and happy in the arms of Jesus
Until we meet again.....Mom

I met Eric in 1984 when he was a young teenager. He immediately impressed me with his positive attitude and his acceptance of challenges with alacrity. He matured into a loving husband, proud parent and was devoted to his siblings,parents, and friends. He will be truly missed.                        

Never will forget the time you asked me to file the head of a Phillips screwdriver…..with another head of a Phillips screwdriver…

-Tyler