June 9th is my Dad's Birthday

I was privileged to enjoy a long association with my father because we lived next door and were involved more with the folks during their retirement years. My children were blessed to have loving grandparents so close. I am grateful for that and all I learned from them. I received the priesthood from him. I have used it and given it to my son and blessed my daughters as well. That is its nature. I have given it to others who didn't have a Dad like mine. I cherish the first Sunday I sat with him in the High Priests group. I was called to be a most junior member of the Centerville Stake High Council. For a number of years my Dad served on the Davis Stake High Council. When I was a kid we would go with Mom to hear him speak in Farmington and Kaysville.

In honor of my Dad I took RA and Em to the ice cream store here in Ft. Bragg today. Naturally, I ordered a scoop of strawberry. He was definitely a strawberry guy. When we were kids we often would take a Sunday drive that ended up with an ice cream cone, sundae, or shake, usually at the fountain at Service Drug in Bountiful. Later when Baskin and Robins opened we would take our kids and the folks would treat everyone to ice cream. Families always came before anything else including silly interpretations of rules about not shopping on the sabbath, even to buy ice cream cones. My Dad was like that. He was honest and down to earth, the most honest man I ever knew. He always told it the way it was and did not mind the use of a few good four letter words here and there. Mom used to marvel that none of us picked up on any of his bad words. He never used those words to put anyone down but they could be applied to a weather report for example. Once we were contemplating a trip somewhere and Mom asked Dad what Bob Welti had said the weather was going to be and he responded by saying. "the damn weather is going to be raining with snow in the mountains." Astonished my mother questioned whether the weatherman really said "the damn weather..."

My Dad had few hobbies other than working though he liked to fish and hunt in his earlier days with friends and some family members. He liked a nice car and I had some pretty sweet rides to drive to high school and beyond. Once a brand new Buick came home for a few days and never left. At first he told Mom it was just a "loaner". Finally, he admitted he had bought it. Our boat was acquired similarly. It was planned secretly without Mom knowing about it until the time was right and after several inspections at Otto Smith's workshop the secret was revealed.

Dad instilled in all of us a sense of duty and service. He wore his life out in doing things for others and for all of us. He was an example in many ways and there is lots more than his love of strawberry ice cream and Sunday rides that continues with us to this day.

Thanks Dad for everything and Happy Birthday!