Our father fought on Iwo Jima. He wasn’t in the flag-raising team. Instead, he was caring for the wounded.
He received a Silver Star and many other commendations for his service.
He didn’t like to talk about what he saw over there, as it was so devastating and brought tears to his eyes.
Shortly after returning from the war, he met and married our mother. They had six children and adopted a seventh. Our brother, Carl, had cerebral palsy and died in his early 30s. Dad fought to keep Carl at home and involve him in all family activities, even though Carl couldn’t walk or talk. Dad stressed that we were all family.
Many times, Dad worked two — and sometimes three — jobs to support us, so Mom could stay at home and take care of the family. I remember there were years when he worked seven days a week to bring in enough income. When we did have a vacation, we always visited family. Dad stressed that family was the center of everything, and we should not forget it.
Dad’s primary job was as a grease monkey. He changed oil and did repairs for trucking companies. Many times, he would be called out in the middle of the night for a repair or to change a tire. He did this without a single complaint. Many times, he only had two or three hours of sleep before he had to go to work.
He taught all of us automotive basics: how to change the oil, check fluid levels and change tires. He was also there for our school activities. He helped out as a band parent, making signs and doing whatever was needed.
A major value that we learned from our father was that we needed to work hard and be proud of our accomplishments. I am proud to say that, because of his example, we are an honest, hardworking family.
We lost our father in January 2000. Precious memories of him are forever in our hearts.
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