I've known this day would come for so many years as my father suffered with Parkinson's. As I've watched that cruel disease take my dad away piece by piece, I thought I was prepared, but I’m not. But I am grateful that he passed peacefully, holding my moms hand with us by his side. I am grateful that I never left his side without telling him how much I loved him. Everyday. I miss him so much already. He held on as long as he could for my mom, who is fighting through her own debilitating disease, and I know it was so painful for him to watch her suffer and he didn’t want to leave her behind. He taught me to value relationships and people. Because everything he had and everything he built was with the help and support of the people he bonded with. And anyone who really knew him, knows how good he was at finding good people and making them his friends. You could not have met dad without loving him... without feeling welcomed, without feeling he cared to hear your stories. My father passed that along to us. To welcome people of different backgrounds, cultures, ideas and to hear their stories and embrace them and learn from them. He encouraged us to embrace life to the fullest, to take risks and appreciate what we had while also going out to find new adventures. ... great experiences and travel and joy and food and jokes and laughter and friends... My father was a great storyteller, he loved a riddle, and he always had a joke for whatever occasion arose. But perhaps the most poignant memory that encapsulates his fatherhood, to me, is how he cared for me when I was sick as a child. They are some of the best memories I have of my dad despite the pain that went along with it. When I had graves’ disease and would frequently break my bones, he would hold my hand and look at me and tell me with the deepest sincerity that he wished he could take my pain away. I believe wholeheartedly that he would have if he could have then. And I know he would take our pain away today if he could. I miss you already dad I wish you hadn’t had to suffer in the end like you did and I wish I could have taken some of your pain away too. I miss you so much and I love you