My dearest son

It has been 40 years since you left me to be with your father in heaven. When I see the flag at half mast, I remember your funeral. There were forty cars of Officers from twenty states to say goodbye to you. The judges of the county closed the court rooms where you had served for ten years.

Your example has touched the hearts of your Army comrades you served with in Honduras, a forgotten place and time. The Agent Orange they use there gave you the cancer that sent you home.

Remember the talk we had when I asked you what your plans are when you finish school. You manned up and said, want to go to the Army and become an M.P. then return and go to the Police Academy. I will get married to a Christian lady and we will have two children, a boy and a girl. In the meantime, I will learn to play the guitar.

All I could say was, that’s a good plan if you stick to it.

So proud of you, you learned to play the guitar, and you had a voice of an angel. All the children at Sunday school, even today, still talk about you. How you stuck to it every Sunday. You shared life with them available, listen to their plans, and prayed with them.

You stuck to your plan; your Son and daughter grown and serve the Lord like their dad.

By your example you have made a difference not only during your life, but even today. Missing and knowing I will someday see you again gives me hope.

Dad