Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all the Dad's out there! Go hug your Dad, if he's close--or give him a call if he's not--or send up a prayer if he is no longer with us here (they hear them you know!)!

Here's my handsome Dad! It's his grad picture--isn't he dreamy? And such a jock! I just finished scanning in a scrapbook that my Grandma put together filled with all the newpaper clippings and sports ribbons and letters that he earned in high school! WOW--it's sometimes hard to imagine one's Dad as such a dynamic young man--but there it was! Every football game article is filled with his name and picture, softball, and hockey too. My Dad was the oldest son--in a family with 17 kids!! Yes--SEVENTEEN! lol

Unfortunately we have arthritis that runs in the family, and he was stricken rather harshly with it. Of course, that never stopped him--he just kept plugging along--one of the most energetic and ambitious people I've ever known. In fact, most people had no idea how much pain he was in all the time. Being a sufferer of arthritis myself (thanks a lot Dad! lol) I cannot tell you how much admiration I have for him!!

This second picture is one of my very favorite pictures of him. This was taken right before they all moved out to Arizona and left me here in MN! YUP, the whole family up and moved way far away--left me here all alone! He had started his own business and became very successful. He's a strong, capable, intellegent, hard-working, and kind man. He's always been such a good Dad to us all. He was always one to take us fishing, ready to play and have fun, on trips, kiting, teaching us to make stuff, he even liked to take us all to work with him--he was a firm believer that you need to TEACH kids to work and take care of business and themself. I thank him so much for those lessons--no one in our family thinks that you get anything for nothing and we can all take care of ourselves very well, thank you very much!

Dad has always been a religious man. We all grew up to love and respect the Lord. In his later years, in Arizona, he became a deacon and does his ministry mostly tending to those people in their older years and in nursing homes. He is loved and appreciated by many. Him and his wife were foster parents too for many years and ended up adopting 2 little girls that came from a crack addicted mother. So, I now have 2 little sisters that are the same age as my kids! lol

We almost lost my Dad a little over a year ago. He suffered from 2 major heart attacks in a row, and was in intensive care, with machines keeping him alive. The doctors reported that he wasn't showing any brain activity and that he has a "no extra-ordinary measures are to be taken to keep him alive" clause in his will-- so they scheduled a time to take him off the machines. We all started to pray, all his very large family, all the people he tended to in his ministry, and the hundreds of people who came by to offer prayers and support to his wife. The hour came for the machines to be stopped. They came and pulled the breathing tube from his throat, and he started to talk! Cohesively. No brain damage at all. Within about a week, they inserted a defibrilator and sent him home! So, no one tells me that there are no miracles or that prayer doesn't work. I know. And I thank God for letting us have Dad here for a while longer!

Love you Dad!!