I need to first start out and say how I was first introduced to my future father-in-law. I was a freshman in college and Nancy and I had been introduced by her brother Johnny.On this one evening I was invited to stay for dinner, John said have some spaghetti with us as Helen boiled the pasta. Wow on that night a giant discovery … there were alternatives to Franco American spaghetti out of the can. When I came home from leave from the Air Force I asked John if I could help him out at his furniture shop for a couple of weeks to make some extra money. Wow what a worker he was. Running the shop of nine guys doing all the heavy lifting and coordinating all the furniture frame shipments. Talk about a physical job… this was it. A load of lumber shows up at the loading dock door…10,000 board feet of maple and oak that weighed ten gazillion pounds. Lets unload it, stack it then plane it then cut it to length. An exhausting job but he did it like a marathon man. I, on the other hand couldn’t keep up with this workaholic and I was just 22! Fatigued, tired and listless when I got home… barely ate dinner and I was off to bed to do it all over again at 5:30 am. John was a great guy at the shop giving disadvantaged people a shot at making a living with his furniture frame company. In a few instances Nancy even wrote to prisons in support of some ex-cons he hired to give them a second chance. This man had the patience of a saint. So often he would take Helen shopping and wait in the car for hours letting her do her thing. Many times after hours of shopping Helen would come back to the car empty handed. He would scratch his head and ask her what the hell had she been doing all that time… only Helen knows.  He was the king of baby sitters… loved the grandchildren and any opportunity to watch them was a very special time. Danni, Michael, Kim and even some neighborhood kids were left under his care. Along with occasional dog sitting for our Brandy and Oliver whenever we needed him. No complaints ever… well maybe once when Johnny was caught drinking as a teenager. He had a heart of gold and every one knew it and sensed it.  During all his hospital stays all the nurses fell in love with him and one very special doctor which our entire family fell in love with too. His savior Dr. Reyes. A very special person who many of you have met as she attended several of our family events. John loved her so much… a very special person who’s diligence and compassion finally diagnosed and healed his internal bleeding problem. She made several house calls which required her to rent a car to make the journey to Wakefield. Even when she was on vacation in Korea she called us to check on John. We’ve adopted her and her fiancée Steven into our family. The adoption papers are in the mail.  I must make several tributes to the family.            Helen – your love and determination to care for him the best you could was more then amazing. During his last days John struggled very hard to walk. I went over on one Sunday night and it took me about 20 minutes to get him from the kitchen to the bed in the living room. The next morning with no help at all Helen had him at kitchen table sitting down feeding him. How she did it I don’t know. How she managed for so many days with little or no help is beyond me. Love is a powerful thing.
 Nancy- your dedication and devotion to your Dads care was unbelievable. You fought for the best care ever for your dad. He was so proud of you and your devotion to getting him well. During one rough incident at Melrose Wakefield hospital she stated get him out of here because if you don’t you will need to arrest me. Always looking for the best care for her dad. And finally she found it a Mass General with doctor Reyes. Her determination paid off. Love is a powerful thing.