Marvin spent the last 10 years of his life at his home in Callao, Va.

He read Time and Consumer Reports in the mornings. He watched Britcoms on Maryland Public Television, ch. 22, in the afternoons. His favorite Britcom was Last of the Summer Wine.

My father was a great mechanic. He could fix anything and do it well. The next generation of my family's mechanics were not as effective or efficient.

My father was also a good carpenter, plumber, and electrician. He was a "jack of all trades," to use an old cliché. He was good at many jobs.

My father tinkered on projects until he was unable to work anymore.

He died on December 4, 2008.

On the encouragement of my uncle, James Lee Davis, a building engineer for Smithsonian Institution, Marvin applied for a position as an auto mechanic with Smithsonian's Physical Plant in Suitland, Md.

Marvin moved to Clinton, Md., in 1978, after accepting this job. He worked for Smithsonian for 20 years.

Marvin lived with his brother and sister-in-law in Clinton. Later, he rented a room from an acquaintance.

Marvin returned home on Wednesday nights to tend to his vegetable garden in the summer months. He planted many kinds of vegetables: potatoes, tomatoes, corn, carrots, onions, squash, zucchini, turnips, greens, and cabbage.

He visited my mother and me on weekends. He liked to do fix-up projects at home then. He built a barn, for example, in the 1980s.

After a series of health problems, he retired from Smithsonian in 1998.

My parents bought 2 acres of farmland in an agricultural community called Mundy Point in Callao, Va. In 1973, they moved into a newly built three-bedroom, two-bathroom home.

Marvin and a friend of his, Hiram "Junior" King, built this home. My mother named this home "The Pines" before she died.

My older siblings lived there until shortly after they graduated from high school. One by one, they moved out, for jobs, school, or family. By 1980, I was alone with my mother there.

My father retired from J.C. Moss & Son in 1978.