Grandpa

Though a blog post seems a tad awkward, it doesn't feel right to come back from my blogging lapse with a post about anything else. Last week I lost my dear, sweet Grandpa Heintzelman to a swift and ruthless bout of cancer. He was seemingly healthy as a horse at Christmas and here it is only May. I wish I had a copy of my dad's eulogy because he said it best - my Grandpa was the most wonderful, selfless, caring, honorable, honest and humbly intelligent man on this planet. He loved my Grandma he called Peggy without even a moment's waiver for almost 60 years. And he adored his 3 sons, who he aptly started calling big bear, middle bear and little bear near the end of his life, as well as his 5 grandchildren. He was Jimmy's favorite sports fan, my mom and sister's favorite crossword puzzle partner, my dad's favorite political devils advocate, my Grandma's "main squeeze" and the whole families' best source of information and advice.

{Newlyweds, 1954}

I can't put into words how proud I am of my Grandma's strength and courage during my Grandpa's battle with cancer and her first week without him. The same goes for my dad and my uncles - their vigilance, support and courage over the last couple months was truly remarkable.

I know death is a part of life and life goes on, but I think that all who knew him would agree, life was much sweeter when my Grandpa was here...

{William Hale Heintzelman Oct. 1, 1929 - May 6, 2011}