Terms and Conditions
Friday, September 02, 2005
Submitted by Jo-Ann
as a tribute to Peter.
To my Stepdad Peter,
I wanted to do something more than give you a gift this year. There is no gift that could express how much you mean to me. Sometimes my path was rocky and I didn't appreciate you as much as I should, but I don't ever want you to think that I didn't think of you as my true Dad. You were there when my Dad wasn't, through both the good and the bad times. I can't imagine you not being family. You are the smartest and most easy going person I have ever known and I hope that the father of my kids will be half as understanding as you have been. I love you very much and I hope you have a great Father's Day.
Love,
Your daughter Jo-Ann
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Submitted by Tyler Minty
as a tribute to Andrew Minty.
It's been two years since I last hugged you Dad, but you remain in my heart always and forever. With the sudden loss I finally understood what it is like to lose someone very special, for you are my bestfriend my hero. I love you Dad so much, and I know you are watching me from heaven and protecting me from any danger. I love you for that. I miss you so much and I wish to God you were still alive to see how much I've grown up. I love you Dad. You taught me to respect women, to respect what you have, and to live each day like it was your last day.
With love and memories that will last my whole life,
Andrew
Friday, July 15, 2005
Submitted by Tim Nichols
as a tribute to Herb Nichols.
THE BEST THING
by Tim Nichols
Newspapers from my hometown said there had been a rise in suicides. Crisis centers were straining. Thousands were suddenly out of work. Factories that had given Akron its nickname, "The Rubber Capitol of the World," were shutting down. No retirement would go to those who dreamed mainly of it.
I was stationed with the Army in northern Italy at the time. I found a place to be alone and I wept. I lost weight while I got used to the idea, over the next few weeks, that my Dad was out of work.
Like droves of others in the 1940's, my Dad moved from West Virginia to northern Ohio to find work. Grandpa and uncles moved too. The lumber industry in central West Virginia had dried up. Coal mines provided few jobs at that time. So my Dad migrated from the mountains to the flatlands, from a dirt farm in paradise to a new way of life where smoke belched among a people who both ridiculed and admired the newcomers from the hills.
He married my mother. They had six children. I'm number four.
The factory pay was good. My dad earned his. He went to work a full hour before he was required to be there. His hands and his tools were already prepared to go to work when the time clock registered that he was there.
He made up for what he lacked in education in effort and raw ability. Eighth grade was the norm for his generation and place of birth. He had milked a lot from the limited opportunity. He was a fast learner. Without formal training, Dad was a skilled carpenter. When he was not at the factory he was usually working on odd jobs. He roofed houses, built garages and porches, and developed human contacts to help him find more of these opportunities. I recall, as a youngster, seeing only a few books beside his bed. The only title I remember is, HOW TO WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE, by Dale Carnegie.
He never complained, but Dad did not especially love going into the factory and sweating for more than eight hours at a time. I infer that from his frequent mention, in those days, of the number of years he had left before he could retire. Every time the union negotiated a new contract the number changed. He had it down to years, months and weeks. Retirement was the glorious carrot dangling out there, coming closer all the time. Quitting was not an option that he ever mentioned.
He had only a few years left before he could retire when I joined the army. He knew exactly how many.
Then the newspaper came. They stole my Dad's carrot. How would he find a way to land on his feet after that? I called home. Dad said they were offering some sort of retraining benefit, but it did not sound like much at the time. It felt like a tiny handout compared with the withdrawn promise of retirement.
A few months later he told me that he was enrolled in a class preparing him to take the GED. He passed that. He enrolled in a real estate course. Then he said that he was selling real estate. Then he was building another house. He bought a place in Florida. He bought one property after another, houses needing work. Restoring these and then selling them or renting them, he seemed to be doing well. I don't remember exactly when it first dawned on me that he had recovered from the tragedy that caused me such distress.
I do remember the moment it became crystal clear. I had left the Army after my enlistment, gone to college, married and was working out my own future. He said to me, "Timmy, you know what? The best thing that ever happened to me was when they shut down that factory."
I think of that when my own options seem limited and when I'm uneasy about forced choices and forks in the road. When I catch myself demanding that the world line up with my own intentions and hopes I remember the "best thing that ever happened" to my Dad.
When fate robs us of our carrot, it's probably time to plant brand-new seeds in fresh soil and grow our own carrots. Life is seldom fair. It's up to us to so order our response to changes that we can later return and thank those who've slammed and locked doors. The world is indifferent about our success or failure. That's why we must not be. It is up to you--and no one else--to turn blighted hope and defeat into the best thing that ever happened to you.
Thanks Dad,
Tim
Sunday, June 19, 2005
Submitted by Jan
as a tribute to John.
Dad... I try everyday to emulate the life lessons you taught and showed. I'm so proud I had a dad like you. Happy Father's Day.
Love,
Jan
Friday, June 17, 2005
Submitted by LAURA ANN INGLES
as a tribute to NICHOLAS C. RUZZA.
"To My Father In Heaven"
I miss you very much. You will forever be in my mind, thoughts & prayers each day. You also will live on forever in my heart. You are deeply missed, but I know that I will see you again when I enter into heaven.
Love Always--Your daughter, Laura Ann
Friday, June 17, 2005
Submitted by Kathy
as a tribute to William (Father in Law).
Two Dads for Me
How lucky can a daughter be?
Having two Dads – what a blessing for me
The love from two fathers, it surely is rare
One as a child, learning how to care
One as a daughter(in-law), with a son “forced to share”
In 1960, to a Dad I was born,
but fifteen years later I was forced to mourn
Now as an adult, those childhood memories in my heart
I soon would be blessed with a new start
In 1980 what a blessing there was to be
As Kenny took a wife, a second Dad he gave to me
2005 brings twenty-five years we have had together
Some for the worse, but all for the better
You live, you love, you laugh, you cry
You learn from each other as days go by
From giving you money on your wedding day,
To teaching you to fish the old fashioned way
From Seminole Street to Old Town lake,
From Christmas days to birthday cakes
From Helena to Hot Springs
From a U-Haul truck and angel wings
To kids close by and better things
I did not know what God had in store
By letting me have just one more
A Dad that is loving, kind and sweet
A second Dad that is a special treat
A heart that is marked with Dads by two
One holds a special place just for you –
Happy Father’s Day 2005
(God Bless you as you fight Lung Cancer)
Thursday, June 16, 2005
Submitted by Tiffany
as a tribute to chris.
My Dad is the best Dad in the whole entire galaxy!! He's the best in the world no matter what anyone else thinks! He is "the best"!
Tiffany
Saturday, June 11, 2005
Submitted by Teresa Hall
as a tribute to Raymond Eugene Mowell.
When I was growing up, my father always seemed to be a larger than life figure. My earliest memories of him are of me, a small child of 4, watching him with people, listening to his infectious laugh, seeing how people gravitated to him. At a party, he always seemed to have a crowd around him that were as entranced as I was. He always looked so good in his military uniform and so in charge. Most of all, he made you feel safe. You may think that it should be easy to get close to someone like that, but it's not. When you have your own feelings of inadequecy and low self-esteem. My father came from an era where the man went to work and provided a home for the family, but he did manage to pass on some life lessons to me that will be with me always. His wonderful sense of humor has sustained me in the darkest of times. I remember him calling me in to watch Monty Python with him and we would laugh for that hour while others in the household just wouldn't get it. I also have his ability to entertain others and that has served me well throughout life. When I was around 11 or 12, he would have my sister and I do the lawn care around the house. He would have me rake the dirt in perfectly straight lines, which I didn't understand at all. Why did the dirt have to be perfect? It was just dirt after all. Years later, I joined the military and was awaiting assignment orders. They give you mundane tasks to do every day, busy work, until your orders come through. One day, the Technical Sergeant gave me the task of raking all the dirt around the dorms. After awhile he came by to check on my progress and shook his head in disbelief. "Mowell" he said, "you are the best damn dirt raker I have ever seen." I smiled inside to myself while I thought about what he had just said. You see, I learned something that day about myself and my Dad. It was simply this. No matter what job you are given, there's a right way to do it and a wrong way to do it. Even dirt raking. You must approach life and all it's challenges with just that attitude. I may not have always taken that right path, but I knew it was there, thanks to my father. The love I have for him today is a seasoned love, peppered with respect for the things he has accomplished in his life, the lessons he has passed to me and the unconditional support he has shown me through the years. He has never, not even once, stopped being my father and I have never, not even once, stopped being his daughter. Duty, honor and responsibility are just words to some people, but they are his crown. Happy Father's Day, Dad.
Love,
Terry
Saturday, June 11, 2005
Submitted by Gloria Patterson
as a tribute to Andrew Curne Sr..
"Give them their FLOWERS while they yet live" is the saying and Dad I give you your flowers now. You have been a wonderful father to me. My friend and listening hear when I needed to talk to someone. My helper when I needed help and encourager when I needed encouragement. No one could ask for a better father. I thank God for you and for giving me to you and Mom as my God fearing parents. People who know me say, "you talk about your Dad all the time" true, I am a "Daddy's girl". I love you for your strength and the strength you give to me. In the past when times where bad you were there and when times were good you were there. I know you cannot be with me forever, but I can wish. Happy Father's Day Dad and the best for you is yet to come.
Your eldest daughter,
Gloria
Sunday, May 29, 2005
Submitted by Hunter
as a tribute to Hauss.
Dearest Daddy,
It's Father's day and I just wanted to tell you how great I think you are! You work so hard to take care of me and Mommy every day. You love to spoil me and take me to Toys R Us (where we buy stuff you like to play with too:) We play fight, go swimming in the pool, and just have a fun time. I'm so lucky to have a special Daddy like you.... I couldn't have picked a more perfect Daddy!
I love you,
Your son, Hunter
Wednesday, May 18, 2005
Submitted by Princess
as a tribute to Bill Burns.
Dad, I know I don't always act like it, but I love you. I'm not the perfect daughter, but even if I was, it wouldn't do you justice. I'll never be able to repay you for all you've done for me, your baby girl, but I hope that someday I can give something back to you for all you've unselfishly given to me for 20 years. Even through the ups and downs in our lives, you've continued to give like you always have. Thank you, Daddy. I'll always be your little girl. Happy Father's day.
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