My Wonderful Father

Well, Father's Day weekend is upon us and I didn't want it to slip by without paying tribute to my dear Dad even though he has not been here with us on earth since 2002. Mom has since remarried--at age 75--and there is a new father-figure in our lives, but my sweet daddy still holds a special place in my heart.

I only have one picture of my Dad and I; back in the late 50's, especially if you were the fourth child, pictures of those precious days were very seldom taken... So I have this one that I hold near and dear to my heart, the only one I know of that exists. It's like gold to me... (Click for larger picture.)

Dad was a kind and gentle fellow and a genious of sorts; that man could fix anything! He was the "Honey Do" man and alway came through. He could fix cars, washing machines, televisions, plumbing, do any kind of home renovation from painting the house inside and out, laying floors, doing electrical wiring, heck he built our first home in Bath, Michigan. It was a 3 bedroom brick house with a basement, and he did it all by himself, except the foundation, and he was only 28 years old!

Dad was a perfect match of Mom since she just loved to travel, and still does. We did it all by car too. When we were little and just had 4 kids, we got everything into a VW Beetle and would travel all over the country in it! Mom's favorite color was aqua, so Dad must have gotten it painted for her... What a guy!

We didn't just travel all over the US, we camped! That little beetle was packed with a canvas tent, sleeping bags, duffle bags, stove, lantern, eating utensils, and food. Dad was a trooper to drive us--safely--all over kingdom come! Day and night too... Mom had to pinch him if she notice him getting drowsy before we reached our destination.

Mom was always crazy about going to Alaska, so Dad made it happen twice in two years back in '68 and '69; now that's a long drive, especially on the Alcan Highway. Thank God we got to take the auto ferry back to the states. The next year we took the ferry up and drove back. On these trips we had our 2-toned VW microbus since we had taken on 4 more foster kids! The second time Mom talked Dad into interviewing for a pipeline job since she had had this dream of having a log cabin and homesteading in Alaska. It was not to be; nice dream, but we were comfortable in our suburban life in SF Bay Area and wow that would have been a culture shock!

When I remember my dear Dad, I think about how he was such a family man. He was all in! He would work all day at work and always be home at night. It was comforting to know we could depend on him to be there for us. He was stable and strong and lived to take care of his wife and family. Later when I was able to compare him with other types of dads, I was proud that he cared for us enough to not smoke or drink like so many of his peers probably did. We didn't have to deal with the heartache so many families had when they had to live with an alcoholic father and didn't know from one day to the next what will happen next. I am really thankful for Dad's faithfulness and devotion to living a sober, yet fun family life.

When I think of my Dad I can see his smiling face and can still hear him call me "Smiley" because he was always making me laugh and smile with his funny antics and gentle, loving ways. As kids, we were so happy to see him when he got home that we would each jump each of his feet when he would walk in the door... Oh, that must have been after mom ran up to him and jumped on him and gave him a big hug and kiss... We were all crazy about him!

As Dad approached his later years, I always tried to express my appreciation for all the great times and memories he gave us the opportunity to experience in our lives. I remember at one time he had said something to the affect that he regretted not being able to give us more even though we had everything we needed, but I quickly reminded him the value of all the happy memories and times together that were worth more than gold to me, and I meant it...

I sure miss you, Dad... I know I'll see you again some day... Happy Father's Day and, again, thanks for everthing you did for us...

With love, your baby daughter, Barbara