Monday, December 14, 2009

Larry Gelinas - Melissa's Grandfather

Late Friday night we received a phone call that changed our lives forever. Nate and Anna's great grandfather passed away to be with our Father in Heaven. I'm not going to attempt to write a short biography of this man because 1) I don't know much about his past, and 2) Even if I did, I wouldn't be able to do it justice.

What I can say is that I knew him for 12 years of my life, and every single time I saw him, including the day I met him, he gave me a big smile, then he would shake my hand and pull me in for a big bear hug. Every time. He loved his family. Especially his grandchildren and great grandchildren. He was an incredible man who I always enjoyed being with. He could make me smile no matter what kind of mood I was in. He absolutely adored Melissa, who he openly referred to as his "favorite", so I know he had good taste in women! Saying that he will be missed is a tremendous understatement.

I have been given the honor and privilege to put together a slideshow of Larry's life for his memorial service. Going through all of his old pictures has been an amazing experience for me. It's obvious that he has lived an incredible life. Once the project is done, I will post it on this site for those who would like to see Melissa's "favorite". In the meantime, here are a couple of our most cherished pictures of Larry with our children.

Although we are grieving, we are also rejoicing in the fact that Larry is with Jesus now. The pain and suffering of the illness that took him away is gone, and he now rests peacefully with our Lord and Savior. We miss you, and we love you, Papa.









2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you Willie. You've touched my heart with your kind words about my father. You're a wonderful son in-law and I appreciate all you have done for our family. I love you!

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much Willie. Grandma