Written by his daughter, Patty

To talk about our Dad is to tell you a story of love and service. Our dad loved his God and his family with a profound depth. Mom was Dad’s world. They are truly one forever. Dad’s love for his children, our spouses and grandchildren as well as our extended family was filled with joy and laughter. He challenged us to be the best that we could be and he was so proud as he watched the children he and mom raised become the adults we are today. He and Mom gave us the greatest examples of what a husband and a wife could be and what parents could be. Through their examples we have learned the true meaning of love, and how to be truly present in the lives of those we love. His illness challenged us to reach into ourselves to be able to love more deeply, to give more willingly and to appreciate each other more fully. If you were lucky enough to spend time with our family in the last few years, you know that our home was a happy and light and fun place. Although Dad’s illness was a really difficult time for us, Dad was never a burden to us. My mom put it best when she told the doctor a few weeks ago, “I am grateful for every day this man is alive.” 

They say at baptism that parents are the first teachers and this was a role that our father and mother truly excelled at. 

The other word was service. In serving others we see the face of God. Dad was always ready to be of service to his family, and his community. He would do anything to reach out to others. He served the children that he taught and counseled in his career that he loved. He served the people of St. Agnes community for 35 years. Whether it was the painting parties in St. Agnes elementary school, School board, CCD, RCIA, Antioch, Eucharistic Ministry, the Diaconate, the Baptism program, the Charismatic Prayer community, caring for dying AIDS patients at the INN, visiting the sick of the parish in the hospitals, our dad was always there in a quiet unassuming way. His willingness to be of service to others is something that will never be forgotten. If anyone needed something, he was the first one there to lend a hand. 

A few months ago I started to think about the lessons that Dad was still teaching us even though he really wasn’t able to communicate verbally with us. I’d like to share these with you – Patience - The wonderful comfort that holding someone’s hand can be - The worth of a laugh - The value of a smile - The goodness that we take for granted and that he continually brings out in us - That giving is often a gift to us. I also learned that God doesn’t always answer prayers the way that we expect him to but He always answers. This has been shown to me countless times over the past few years in the outpouring of love from those around us.

We wanted to be able to care for Dad at home as this illness progressed and God gave us the ability to do that by sending Irvin Domingo to care for Dad during the day for the past two years, by sending Uncle Dan Mahony a dear member of our family for 40 years to come and help us every Sunday, and by giving us many others who offered their time, kind words or a willing ear when we needed it.

Our father leaves us a legacy of love, joy and a challenge to move beyond our sadness and loss to become the reflection of God that we are called to be. Dad has gone home now to a God who he served willingly, joyfully and faithfully throughout his life. His spirit will live on in each of our lives as we remember all the good times, laughter, hard times and sadness that we were so blessed to have shared with him while he was here with us.