a well respected man

last weekend, my grandfather, "pop", passed away at his favorite place in the world, our family's lakehouse, which he built himself the year I was born. while my family & I are all devastated that such an incredible man is no longer with us on this earth, we also feel extremely relieved knowing that he has gone to spend eternity in heaven. we feel blessed that we got to spend so many wonderful years with him. pop lived in town (with his wonderful wife, "grammie") so we were all very close with him. the stories & memories have kept us laughing for days. 

I was the oldest grandchild, so I decided to speak at pop's service & share some stories on behalf of the other grandkids.  needless to say, there were lots of laughs and I have no doubt that is exactly how pop would have wanted his funeral to have been: a celebration of his life. 

in 2005, pop wrote, "I want to be remembered as a simple person who loved his family deeply; one who tried to see the best in everyone; a person who strived for patience and understanding." and without a doubt, that is exactly how everyone who knew pop will remember him. he was genuine, open-minded, creative, humble, kind and led an authentic life, which he built upon his faith. 

I made a photo slideshow that ended up being 20 minutes (it could easily have been a hour if I had more time). robert helped me pick out the music for it & one song we used was "a well respected man" by the kinks. such a perfect song to depict the life of someone so well-loved by everyone he encountered. 

{baby photo}

{grammie & pop's wedding picture}

{pop & my mom, the first of three children}

{pop & me}

{me & my sister kara with pop. yes, sadly my haircut hasn't changed in 25 years}

{the in-town fam at christmas}

{robert taking pop for a ride in his vs bus}

{my family at our wedding}

{charles thompson. 8.18.1928 - 7.7.2012}

*thank you to everyone who went out of their way to bring by food, send flowers & attend the service. tragedy certainly brings out true friends.