(1960-1998)
Alan (or “Al”) was born November 22, 1960 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. He was the last of three children & the second boy. Al was always a deep thinker…even as a wee child. He used to watch the Evening News & wag his little head and say, “Turrible!”
Alan was a loner, but loved to be in a gang. He was an introvert and an extreme extrovert. (Just ask his Airborne Ranger buddies!!)
Alan started making dioramas of war scenes when he was very young. He loved to research and his work was VERY authentic! It was “fun” to watch a war movie with him—“Those horses were white in that battalion, not black!”
So, it wasn’t a surprise that his career choice was to become part of the military. This was an INTEREST of Al’s, not a “patriotic thing”. After reviewing and rejecting England and Israel, he was off to the US Army Airborne Ranger’s Boot Camp—and as a Canadian, to boot!!
He was part of the elite Airborne Rangers. ‘Pushed out of an airplane the first time he ever flew!! Alan LOVED it!! He felt like he was soaring like the birds. “Pull to the left—wee!! Pull to the right—wee!!” ‘Ultimately jumped from many continents.
He was stationed in Seoul, Korea. There Al met his lovely bride, Sung-Hee. They had a beautiful little girl, Donna. Granny/Mom and I (Rhonda) visited them in Korea when Donna was nine-months old. WHAT a wonderful, life-changing experience to stay a month in a totally different culture!
Little Diane was later added to their delightful family.
Al had two tours in Korea, then Germany, then Kansas, USA.
Then he retired early. He started working for our Dad. Our Dad's dream was for Alan to eventually take over and Dad would retire.
It had also been Dad’s dream to get his three “kids” together for a reunion. Not so easy when we were in three (3), different countries, eh! Well, Memorial Day 1998, we “did it”!! All together at the Beach. Special…
Two months later, Alan was whisked instantly to Heaven in a car accident…He lives forever in my heart… A quiet, caring, peacemaker; a family man.
During our last visit, Alan and I shared a wonderful good-bye. Complete with a holy kiss and “I love you, Alan”, “I love you, Rhonda”. When there’s a beautiful, sunny day, I look up and smile at God & Alan, together in Heaven.
Rhonda
December 1995. Clockwise, Alan, Donna, Sung-Hee, Diane & Granny/Mom
December 1995. Clockwise, Alan, Donna, Sung-Hee, Diane & Granny/Mom
1 comment:
I've been bad about keeping up with my email since I've started working full-time, hence the late comment. But thank you for sharing this. Even though it still hurts to not have him here, I love hearing stories about him. All of those little habits of his stayed with him. He was always the first one I went to for help on my school projects. (My favorite being the sugar cube igloo he helped me make for a project on Alaska.) I remember him yelling at The History Channel whenever its programs had inaccuracies. Stuff like that keeps him alive. I don't want anyone to forget him.
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