4/1/09 Happy 90th Birhday to My Daddy!

Yes my daddy was an April Fools Baby but believe me, he was NO April Fool. He was with it and he lived life like a fury. He grew up dirt poor in Vinton County Ohio. He was the youngest of 10 kids and his father died while he was a young child. Being a male and the youngest he was often the one at home helping his mama take care of the other kids. At 16 he entered the US Army so he could have a steady pay check. Almost every dime he received was sent home so his mom could care for the other children. This was his life, caring for other people.

My dads whole life was about giving. Always giving to his family, always giving to anyone who needed help. He didn't care if they were family or not, if someone needed something, he'd give them anything he had, including the shirt on his back.

Having a family just reinforced his need to always be giving to his family. He worked hard to take care of us and took little money for himself. He was man who didn't need "things" he just didn't need much. He was happy to have a working TV and radio so he could listen to his favorite team, the Cincinnati Reds. He did love to read and would read anything he could get his hands on but again, his needs were so simple.

My dad believed in family dinners which meant every night at 5 P.M. we'd all be at the table and eating dinner together, he believed in family values and in always putting family first. He worked hard to bestow those same values in me. I am grateful for his dedication to family, for his love and his devotion to my mother and to me, his only daughter. He was tough on me at times but even in those times, I knew I was loved.

On April 1st my father would have celebrated is 90th birthday and if he were still here, there is NO doubt in my mind that he would be the fiesty and lively man that he had always been. Cancer took his life but not before he could give it to the Lord at 80 years old. We were blessed that he was saved at 80 so we can spend eternity with him. Happy Birthday in Haeaven Dad!!