Fred was an unusual man with a huge heart.  My husband and I met him through Donna who has been a lifelong friend of mine.  It took me a while to get to know him but once I did, I knew why Donna loved him.  He was always loyal and the first to ask if you needed help.  

When my husband who was in the Army Reserves was sent to Kuwait at age 58, Fred was the first person to ask me if there was anything I needed.  Every time we visited Donna and Fred, he would always ask if we had enough money to get home and ask us to call and let him know we had gotten back safely.  I always chuckled to myself at this since Rick is 71 and I'm almost 70.  

I know for certain that he loved Donna.  She was always on his mind and he always wanted to be with her.   I can't even begin to say how many times he would call for her when he was sick and she would always run to him even if she had been in there a dozen times that same night.

He was a wonderful father and grandfather.  Whenever any of them wanted or needed anything, they usually got it but not before receiving a life lesson from him.  These life lessons, of course, extended to everyone.  We all just learned to accept them because they were from a place of love and a part of Fred.

I will always remember how he was with Max.  He loved that dog.  Max was a big baby and definitely he was the dog that got me over my fear of large dogs.  Fred loved when Pam's dog Chase would sit with him and when we visited our dog, Solly would do the same.  He would climb up in the bed with Fred and lay with him but when Fred was eating, Solly would just sit and stare at Fred.  Fred would always give in and feed him some of his food.  I think they both loved it.

The world was a better place because Fred was in it and we were all lucky and blessed to have known him and spent time with him.  Rick and I both loved him and will always treasure the memories we have of our times together.  The one thing we both wish was that we could have taken him to the Grand Canyon.  He really wanted to do that and talked about it often.

I know you are now free of pain and seeing wondrous things we can't even imagine. Thank you for enriching our lives.  God bless you Fred.