My Dad

This post is dedicated to my Dad. He died 14 months ago in a hospital room in Athens, Greece. Today is his birthday. I miss him. 33 random tidbits about him.

1. Dad was born in Delta, Colorado to Era and Glen.

2. He had a brother named Jerry, who is 4 years older than him.

3. His father was a truck driver, his mother a school teacher.

4. He had a carefree, happy childhood with many exciting adventures with the neighborhood packs of boys in the small town of Delta.

5. His mother died when he was 14 leaving him to raise himself through the teenage years with his father on the road and his brother having left home.

6. He loved his dog, Laddie, who was his companion throughout the years.

7. He was a great wrestler.

8. He served in the Navy where he joined the LDS church.

9. Then he served a mission in Australia.

10. He attended BYU, met my mother, was married and graduated in accounting.

11. When he was younger he had wavy, thick, auburn hair.

12. They moved to Grand Junction, Colorado where he lived and worked the rest of his life.

13. He loved music and to sing. Some of my fondest memories as a child are listening to my Dad sing and play the ukulele.

Dad as "Captain Martin"

14. When I was in Middle School he made me breakfast every morning and brought it to my room on a little tray. I guess he thought it was important I eat and I was to hurried to do it.

15. He worked hard. Hard at his job, hard at church and at having fun.

16. He was busy, but he never missed anything I did. He was always at my tennis matches and was the loudest fan, (at times, much to my dismay).

17. He knew the back roads of the Grand Mesa and Colorado mountain passes like nobodies business. He took us 4-wheeling to places that made my mother question his judgement (that's putting it nicely). He even let me drive. You should have seen my mother then.

18. He enjoyed nature so much. He's the reason I love to camp, fish, hike and climb 14er's. He climbed many of them, some even as an elderly man.

19. He was a fierce competitor. He never gave up. I remember the tricks he would pull out of his sleeve to beat me at tennis when I started getting good enough to beat him. He hated loosing.

20. He loved volleyball. I'll never forget beating the Lemon Family at Aspen Grove Family Camp. That is where the competition gets intense and my Dad was the leader of it all.

21. He was an avid BYU football fan. In the hospital on his death bed with all of his children we watched BYU beat Utah again with him.

22. He was silly. He always had a funny thing to say and made everyone smile. Everyone who knew him loved him.

23. He loved my mom. I never doubted it once.

24. He protected us. He provided for us. He was everything a father should be and more.

25. He taught me to be smart with money.

26. He loved Oreo's.

27. He wasn't afraid to tell me when he thought I was making a mistake, and pretty much always, he was right.

28. He loved my husband and my children.

29. He wanted to serve. He never desired to retire in style and relax away his final years. Instead he gave his money away to his children and served two missions.

30. First mission was to Thailand as the country director of welfare. He loved it.

31. Second mission was to Athens, Greece where he eventually became ill.

32. Most of all he loved the gospel and his family and pretty much everything in his life centered around those two things. He was a great example.

33. His final words to me were, "Magnify your talents. Magnify your calling." That is what I will try to do.