He went by many names..

George, Dad, Fuzz, Pop, Grandpa, Uncle Fuzz....

When we were little, Mom and dad used to bring us on vacation to ocean beach every year for a week. It was really one of the few times dad would have to rest and catch up on his sleep. Every morning, around 6 am, I would go into his room, shake the bed, and say let's go seining. when I think back on those days, and I imagine all the possibilities that could have awaited a 9 year old waking his dad at 6 am on his vacation, it still amazes me that most days he would climb out of bed, and take us down to the bay and go seining.....but that was dad...he lived his life for us back then, and up until the day he went in the hospital, he lived his life for his family, friends, and neighbors.

He truly had a heart of gold. Dad was always the one to offer a helping hand, whether it was to drive someone to the V.A., take Mom on an outing and wait in the car, haul any of his grandchildren from here to there, help on my cleanouts, or run errands for any one of us...it was his pleasure to do so. Any time you asked him to do anything at all, his only answer would be "no problem" I think Dad loved doing these things because it gave him more time to be with us. His love for all of us was bigger than we will ever know. He adored Skye and Jake, Rebecca, Luke, Nick, Sam, Billy and Lauren, Michael, David and Teddie Sue.....and Audrey, to whom he used to always say, "Bye bye Honey", as she went out the door. Most recently he was blessed with great grandchildren Isabella and Nathan.

As part of the long standing, Old Farr..ends Society, pop looked forward to going down to see his buddies from his high school days once a month at the shore. He would take the trips religiously, and always come back with the satisfaction of knowing he was able to have some laughs with the Herder boys, Uncle John, Jimmy Kessock, and others. As time went on, the group dwindled down considerably, but Dad kept going to see his closest pals. I hope when I reach 80 I am able to do the same with some of my close friends.

He loved baseball; he was a devoted fan of Casey Stengal. He had created a little baseball shrine in his old real estate office, and after closing the office, he moved it to one of my warehouses. He used to bring us to Yankee games when we were kids, but when Casey was fired and went over to the Mets, he became a Mets fan. It didn’t matter to him the Mets were awful most of the years he rooted for them, it mattered that his man Stengal was there in the beginning. He would root for the underdog, and remain faithful to his team.

Every year Dad would put up a sign in front of his store, 10 weeks till spring..I think that was his way of lifting the spirits of everyone around him, strangers and friends alike. When I took over the shop on the corner, he would always let me know when that day had come to make the "spring announcement." you would be amazed at how many people looked forward to seeing those few words each year.

Mom was his closest friend...he knew how to make a relationship work, he always wanted her nearby. Occasionally Mom would take a trip for one reason or another, somewhere without Dad, and he would be like a lost puppy until she returned. He loved her so so much. He would say, 57 years and never a cross word...we know better than to believe that one, but I can honestly say, he and Mom knew how to settle their differences.

A few years back, Mom caught a mouse in the attic of the house. She decided to keep it, because she found it so adorable. Dad reluctantly went along. The mouse was pregnant, soon there were 18 mice running around in the cage Mom had set up for them. Every time we would stop by, Mom would say, "Come see the mice! They are so cute...Dad would simply sit in his chair and roll his eyes...we knew he was not crazy about the idea of all these mice, but Mom wanted them, so what could he do? 18 mice became 30, and then 40, when the magic number went to 51, you could say that is when the mouse hit the fan, and he put his foot down about mice as house guests. Mom and Billy released the mice one day in a nice park like setting, and ....

Mom’s many hobbies and pro-active lifestyle kept pop on his toes. He would be enlisted to drive Mom here and there, and she always kept a vigil at his bedside for 7 weeks without a break. The few times Dad woke up a bit, his eyes would be on Mom almost the whole time. You just knew she was the biggest part of his life. Sometimes over the years there were things Mom wanted to do at their house, add a deck, open the wall to the dining room, put on a front porch. Dad was sometimes reluctant, but hey, if Mom could raise indoor mice, she could do anything. The deck went on, the wall was opened, and the porch went up out front. I think the porch was the one thing Dad loved the most about the changes Mom did. He could watch the neighborhood kids playing out front, and they would come visit him and Mom all the time.

Mom and Dad are like grandparents to most of the kids in the neighborhood. They love having them visit, and would create a special bond with each and every one of them. I know these kids will grow up being better people from knowing Mom and Dad...they will always have memories of a neighborhood full of fun and love.

Dad had another love in his life, his dog Chloe. You would think that dog could walk on water, the way he treated her. She was perfect in his eyes; he could only see the good in her. He would admit she could be a real pain in the, well, you know, but he would always forgive her... like any bad thing she had done was no big deal, just Chloe being Chloe. That little dog chewed a big hole in the back seat of his car, and there is a missing sofa cushion in their living room, but you would never hear Dad say a bad word about his baby. Chloe would sit on Dad’s lap and keep him company...she was always there waiting for him to take her for a ride, which he loved to do.

I could go on and on and on, my father was my best friend. Pop was unique; he had a way of making people glad they knew him. If he liked you, and he liked most people, you would be his friend for life. He lived a full, fun, complete life. He loved his brothers and sisters, his children, his nieces and nephews, his grandchildren, and his friends. He loved my wife Laura so much he had to remind me every time we went somewhere together...that Laura, she is the best, he would always say.

I see Dad all around me today, and I will see him every time I look at my children, or my sister’s children, or my brothers children. I will think of him when I put on my berkenstocks, which he called berkables. I will think of him when I do the dishes. I will think of him when I read the sports page, and I will think of him when the snows of winter will fade in 10 weeks time.

If there is one remaining thought, it is that we are all better people because of my father. on behalf of my Mom, my brother Mick, my sister Anne, and Pop's sister Aunt Betty, I would like to thank you all for coming and rejoicing with us in remembering Pop's life.