Jerome…
When I really just take some time to think that 32 of our 44 years on this Earth were spent having our lives bound together in friendship I am awed. To me you are so much more than a friend… you are literally my brother and our hearts will forever be bound in that brotherly love.
I remember how much we laughed the day we met in middle school PE class. I remember so many other days spent laughing, goofing around and getting in trouble like teenage boys do. Thanks for showing me how to love life…
I remember when we started running in 8th grade and how you used to bang on my window at 6:00am to “get our miles in”… you’d never let me sleep! When we got to high school you insisted we try for nothing less than Varsity. Thanks for pushing me…
I remember our 8th grade field trip to Kennedy Space Center and almost missing the bus back to school because we just “had” to crawl inside that old Saturn V rocket they had on display there. We almost made it all the way through… I remember that same field trip where you would not let me get off the bus without talking to the cute blond girl who liked me. Thanks helping me with my confidence…
I remember how many meals we shared at my house… little did I know that it was often the only food you had that day. I remember our trips to the mall with our lawn mowing money and sneaking pockets full of food out of the buffet to take home to your mom. Even then I appreciated how much you loved and cared for your mother and how she was the most important person in your life. Thanks for opening my eyes to the most important things like family…
I remember 9th Grade homecoming dance and our first real dates... Thanks for loaning me your disco suit!
I remember 10th Grade and all of our good times on the Track and Cross Country teams… getting kicked off the bus for goofing off and never stopping… our successful political campaign to get a famous porn star elected as 10th grade Vice President… and so many more I can’t count them all.
I remember 11th Grade and buying that first piece of junk Datsun pick up truck for $600 dollars. We were free at last!! I remember going to your mom’s apartment to eat her famous Navy Bean soup only to find the place half on fire and full of smoke. I remember the way you ran inside to look for her and how we crawled on the floor from room to room. I remember your relief when we discovered she wasn’t home. Thanks for showing me what courage looks like…
I remember splitting my head open in that same parking lot and you making me stand outside and bleed while your mom dabbed my head with alcohol… I still feel the burn!! I’m not sure what to thank you for there… LOL
I remember the close relationship you developed with my dad… and how proud he was of you when you joined the Navy and became a SEAL. I also remember how much I cried the day you left. Pops loved you like his own son… Thanks for showing me his heart…
I remember you coming home on leave one year and wrecking my bike… You would never stop apologizing to me while the whole time I was really just glad you were ok. Two weeks later I shook my head amazed while we went surfing and you insisted on getting on that board with one arm in a sling just because you “had to get wet”… I guess that was just a SEAL thing.
I remember 1984 in San Diego and our trip down to Tijuana with the girls. I remember how in love I saw you were with Belinda and how you bragged she was the most awesome girl you ever met. I remember our sons being born in 1988 less than 1 month apart and their trip with us a year later to Capt. George’s in Pungo in strollers… again you snuck out food… this time it was Lobster for your wife. I just love that!!
I remember so many times you asked me to skydive with you and I was always chicken… today I am sorry I never went… thanks for never making me feel cowardly.
I remember our trip to Colorado with the boys and how you just soaked up every moment of the beauty of the Rockies, the nature, peace and solitude. I remember how much you loved teaching the boys about survival skills and telling them stories of your time in the SEALS and how enraptured they were with it all. I remember how you encouraged Romie and every moment was meant to strengthen him and help him become a man. Thanks for showing me another facet of fatherhood that is often taken for granted…
I can go on and on with these memories… they all make me smile and give me joy. Most of all, Jerome, I will remember your character, integrity, courage, honor, sense of humor, love and friendship every day! I am proud and honored to be your friend and I will try my best to honor your life by living mine with the same commitment to excellence and virtue as you lived yours. The time we spent together is priceless to me and I will treasure our memories forever. Thank you for showing me the characteristics of a truly wonderful human being… I love you my brother!
And when I join you in Heaven… make sure to poke your nose through the pearly gates so I know where to go... I know I won’t be able to miss it by seeing that thing! Even your mom says your nose was really bigger than mine!! Until then… soar with the Angels…
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