Eulogy

In Matthew 22:37-39 Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

There are many people that I have spoken with who have stories that demonstrate my Dads love.  And it’s comforting and pleasing to our family to hear them. Dad has many friends and has helped many people throughout his career in banking and his life. Many of them have become close friends to our family as well.   

My tribute to our Dad has come from recognizing just how much our Dad loved.

Dad loved his family, and especially his grand children, and to watch him interact with them made us proud.
Dad loved helping people.
Dad loved sports especially baseball and basketball, fishing and swimming.

Dad loved home cooked “polish style” meals which Bonnie learned to cook for him very well.
Dad loved Candy more than a bear loves a picnic basket.
Like a squirrel hordes acorns, dad stashed candy in all kinds of places.
Dad loved popcorn, cherry popsicles, and watching sports or old westerns on tv while relaxing in bed.  

In the old days he loved his channel changers, we know this because he would always call our names... Tom… Maria… Bob…?
He would call until one of us answered, Then we had to go and change the channel for him.
We loved it when Dad got a new TV with a clicker channel changer.
I think they invented that just for Dad.

Dad loved travel, camping, and taking us on trips up North.
He’d take us to pick cherries in Door County, to get apples near the Horicon Marsh when the geese flocked in on their migration.

He loved to play cards.
Dad loved to wear his cowboy boots with shorts in the summertime, funny how fast he could run in those things.

Dad loved his brother and sisters.
Dad loved Bonnie …and called her "his own angel from heaven".

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­As Dad aged - it seemed his capacity to love expanded. He told us often how much he loved us.

Reflecting back, I believe that God in his own timing had orchestrated our last few weeks together.

You see Dad was determined to have us all together to have family pictures taken this summer.

My Brother Bob and his wife Julie arranged for that to happen at their son Stevens wedding last weekend.

My sister Jane arranged for our sister Maria and her family to come up from Florida so we could all be there for the photographs together.

Maria took off from work and made a special trip home.

Alan’s family took dad fishing the week before in Waupaca.
Did I tell you Dad loves fishing?

And myself, well I was called for the rather glorious privilege of unplugging Dads toilet last week. (said smiling)
But Afterward I was truly blessed with an enjoyable time to chat with my Dad and Bonnie.
...and I’d unplug toilets every day to have more time with him.

There were other tasks my dad wanted completed too. He was expressing last week - with a sense of urgency - "these things have to be done by Thursday", he kept saying!

Wednesday afternoon Dad was taken to the Hospital, not feeling well.
After numerous tests and being put on oxygen he seemed to be doing much better.

It appeared he just needed rest, as his body was exhausted. As I recall from talking with Bonnie it seems Dad had peacefulness about him on Wednesday evening.

…And - with All the tasks completed
…Dad passed away early Thursday morning. He was only71

And last. Dad also loved Jesus. He knew Him as his Lord and Savior.

John 3:16 reads:  For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son,
that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Though we will miss him, knowing this gives us peace.

>>>

In life we all have choices to make;
each choice is our very own as God gave us “free will “.

We can choose to remember - and to forget.
We can choose to hold a grudge - or to forgive.
We can choose our attitudes, good - or bad.
We can choose to love - or to hate.

As the years passed by, it’s clear what Dad choose

…Dad Loved.

>>> 

Our family wishes to express our love to all of you from our Dad,
and to thank you for all your thoughts and prayers.
May God guide you and bless you as you journey through life.
Amen