Daddy Gene

(The whole gang, My mom is on the very right with the short hair)

Now Grandpa was pretty much the only father my mother and her full natural siblings knew, or at least he was the one man that filled the shoes of a Dad. (and of course he was the only father the rest had naturally!...lucky!)

 

 Especially for my Mom's little brothers. He was the only father they really have any memory living with and he was a fabulous father and Daddy. That is what my mom and her sister's called him-- Daddy. 

 

He was the one who taught them to drive, bought them their first "fixer uper" car, and interviewed potential dates. He was not yet a baptized member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and the step-dad, and yet he paid for 2 missionaries, and 2 weddings in the Temple he  couldn't attend.  My grandpa told me about the time they had sent out their first missionary. (FYI Mormon missionaries pay their own way.) My grandparents agreed to pay for one week of the 4 in the month. I believe my other uncle was paying for part and the ward helped with the rest. An interesting phenomenon occurred during this first week of the month, though they struggled the other 3 weeks to make ends meet, they never struggled the week they helped pay for my uncle's mission. It became apparent that it would be necessary for my Grandparents to pay for the entire mission. It was the only logical thing to do. So they did, which in turn made it possible for my 2nd Uncle to also serve a mission.  

At his funeral, my uncle said something profound about my Grandpa. "Dad was NOT a hypocrite".  My grandpa was who he said he was and lived as he said he lived and until he believed he could live up to the lifestyle being LDS would require he did not get baptized. I know he had a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He loved the Bible and he was Christlike in his actions, but until he could stop smoking he didn't get baptized. .... and when he finally did he never looked back.


 In 1987 He was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day saints.  He asked his boys to do the honors.

                                                                                                                                                            Uncle Dan baptized him and Uncle Ron Confirmed him. 

  It was a glorious day.  While reminiscing these last few weeks it has been mentioned that, as wonderful of a person as Grandpa was, his countenance changed the day he was baptized. He had a new glow. 

 As I said before, I only mention the "Step" part of the equation to solidify your understanding of the love and the bond that we share with this man. My own father who married into the family and has been related to Grandpa for the last 39 years has repeatedly expressed his love for this Dad, how he thinks of him as his own Dad as well... and how he feels like he is a better father because of my Grandpa. I love that my uncles were able to perform this ordinance for a man they loved so much, who was their Step Dad on paper but their Real Dad on the books of the Angels. This was a gift that only they could give him. They who had the Priesthood authority, and that was the first step on his way to becoming Eternally ours!



To Be continued....