With deep regret, I must announce the recent passing of my father, aged 94, this September 11th. He died peacefully in hospice care, after a series of various illnesses and accompanying hospital stays beginning on June 27th of this year.
My father was Professor Emeritus in Engineering-Technology at the University of Dayton for over 35 years before his retirement in 1986. Before and after his retirement, my father enjoyed sports, traveling, history (particularly European history from 1870 to 945), reading, good food and good conversation, and gardening, which he was quite proud of. Above all, my father enjoyed performing in amateur theatre productions at the Dayton Theatre Guild, of which he was one of the founding members and where he met my mother, who was also an actor and who later directed several plays at the Guild, some of which included my father. My father won many awards for his performances, including a couple of best acting awards and several best supporting acting awards. The role that I most enjoyed seeing him perform was when he took the part of an elderly rabbi, living in the United States, but then accused of collaborating with the Germans in WWII. Even though he was not Jewish, my father somehow obtained a book of Yiddish pronunciations, and his portrayal was so convincing that one of his Jewish friends joked with him after the performance that, "I never knew you were actually one of us!"
Most importantly, my father was a wonderful and loving parent. He was my father, my mentor, and perhaps my best friend; although at times, I wish he had been a little firmer with me. He taught me to always be considerate of others, and tolerant of (most) of their viewpoints, but also to not back down if I believed I was in the right. I never heard my father make a racist, ethnic, or religious slur against anyone, and he was well-liked by almost anyone who ever met him. I will miss him dearly and I will never forget all the good (and even some of the bad) times we had together.
Rest in Peace, Dad.
BB (aka Chris)
“With Major Lawrence, mercy is a passion. With me it is merely good manners. You may judge which motive is the more reliable.”
Sorry to hear about your loss, BB. It's never easy and rarely seems like it is "time". He certainly seems like he had as good a run as any of us usually get. Let us raise a glass in his honor.
RR
The older I get, the more I realize I don't need to be Han, Luke or Leia. I'm just happy to be rebel scum...
Very sorry to hear that Chris. He certainly had a great innings, living to a good old age, and from what you write he had lots of great experiences together with a loving family, and was a decent person to boot. What more can you ask? May he rest in peace.
You have been blessed with the influence of a fine human being. They say we only die when our name is mentioned for the last time. Now you get to make sure that all the good stories continue to be told in your family. Terribly sorry for your loss and sending you best wishes.
Thank you, Rick, Hellshade, 77_Scout, Mark, Sandbagger, MFair, Raine, Becker01, and anyone else who has read my post or taken note of my loss. I truly appreciate it. Although relatively small, I really believe that the WOFF community is one of the best ones on the web.
Mark, you are absolutely right that my father lived a good life and that he was a decent man. Indeed, what more can you ask, except for just a little more time?
Mike, thank you for your very kind words. I don't know if I've ever heard a better way to describe my father. Bless you.
I'm still at the stage where at least once a day--and frequently much more than that--I'll hear or think of something that I want to share with my father, only to quickly realize that I can't reach him anymore, except in my thoughts and memories.
Finally, assuming I can remember how to post a pic, let me show you a photo I took of my Dad around 2018, when he was "only" 88.
“With Major Lawrence, mercy is a passion. With me it is merely good manners. You may judge which motive is the more reliable.”
My father was also a bit of an amateur genealogist, and looking through his papers and files, I found some interesting information about my family. particularly on my mother's side (she passed back in 1990). Apparently, some of my mother's side of the family came to America from Holland, Wales, and Ireland as far back as the mid-1660's! One ancestor fought in the Revolutionary War, another was a brother-in-law to Daniel Boone, and another ancestor was a brother to the great-great-grandmother of Orville and Wilber Wright! I'm not sure if that makes me related to the Wright Brothers or not, but perhaps it explains my interest in flight sims!
My father's side came over much later, from Switzerland in the 1850's. Unfortunately, my great-great-great grandfather bought a farm just southwest of Knoxville, Tennessee, which just so happened to be directly between the Union and Confederate lines during the battle of Knoxville in November of 1863. Family lore says he was killed by either Union or Confederate soldiers who wanted his farmhouse for a barracks or sniper position.
I also found some interesting information about my stepmother's father, who was apparently an aeronautical engineer in Ohio during the 1920's and 30's. I'll upload some pics later.
“With Major Lawrence, mercy is a passion. With me it is merely good manners. You may judge which motive is the more reliable.”
Also wanted to pass long my condolences, BB. I lost my mom back in 2019 and it's still hard some days. It sounds like your father was wonderful. Hoping you are doing okay, little by little, each day.
Thank you, CaptSopwith. I apologize for not responding to your post earlier than this, but I think I am finally beginning to get back on my feet now after my father's passing in September. As you noted, my father was a good man, and about as good a father as anyone could hope for. We were very close, and I still miss him every day.
My condolences on losing your Mom in 2019.
“With Major Lawrence, mercy is a passion. With me it is merely good manners. You may judge which motive is the more reliable.”
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