On June 22, my dad went into the hospital to have his gallbladder removed. While there, they were going to fix a hiatal hernia. He was supposed to be there a day or two. In the early morning hours on July 12, still in the hospital, he passed away.

My dad was in very good health. He was active, worked out 3-4 times per week, and took good care of himself. I guess I kind of took for granted that at 71 years of age, he wasn’t going to be around forever. I certainly didn’t expect what seemed like little more than a day surgery to be the trigger.

My father and I mostly had a good relationship through my life. He was the primary factor for my decision to pursue a career in law enforcement when I was a young adult. And as I grew older and changed careers, married, started a family, he was my closest confidant.

I spent a week in Florida helping my step-mother with arrangements and taking care of whatever tasks I could, before his service (on my birthday, unfortunately) where I gave a sketch of his life. I was a tad nervous, but it went well. I’m posting excerpts of it below.