They say that grandparents are a little bit parent, a little bit teacher and a little bit best friend. For 21 years, I was fortunate enough to get all of that and more with you.
Growing up, you and Grandma were my second set of parents. You attended nearly every piano recital, graduation, Christmas concert, birthday party and sporting event I ever participated in. The hour and a half drive was never too much, and neither was sneaking me $20 behind my mom's back every time you visited.
You taught me how to fish, never making me touch the worm or the fish when I actually managed to catch one. You bravely taught me how to drive, graduating from a riding lawn mower in the backyard, to a golf cart on a gravel road and finally, to a car. But most importantly, you taught me that being kind was the best quality a person could have and you truly were a walking example of that.
Through 10 years of constant health problems, you never complained. You held your head high, laughed it off and showed true strength and character in the face of constant pain and discomfort. Never letting anyone know that you were hurting, and still managing to make everyone around you laugh.
I am going to miss your cooking, your laugh and our Florida vacations. I am going to miss you making fun of me for talking too fast and being taller than you. I'll miss our bickering about Mizzou sports, even though deep down you were a huge fan and proudly wore every article of clothing I got you. Your daily text messages and phone calls always turned a bad day into a good one and every day I wish your name would pop up on my phone just one more time.
Through the words and stories from your coworkers, neighbors and friends, I learned that you weren't just my Grandpa. You were an amazing friend, an unbelievably hard worker, and the life of the party, even up until the end.
You truly were an exceptional man. You were one of the good ones. My life will never be the same without you in it, and I can I only hope to, someday, be as great of a person as you were.
Your voice will forever be in the back of my mind, and your memory will always be in my heart. My third parent, my amazing teacher, my best friend, my Grandpa.
