My father went into Normandy on D-Day +1. He was a combat engineer. He followed the troops all the way to Germany. He had a picture of himself and his brother looking out the window at Berchtesgaden. My dad fought in the battle for Alaska first. Then fought in North Africa. And finally landed in Normandy at D-Day+1. When he came home, he never wanted to talk about his time in the army. He had seen too much. He wouldn’t even allow guns in the house. When he came home, his old employer offered him a job in Bermuda. Mom said she wanted to go. But dad said he had traveled the world and seen enough for a life time. Dad wanted to go to college to be an engineer. He started but his first son came along. He left college and began to work to support his family. Even though his dream was college and career as an engineer, he never went back. He worked in the Post Office until he retired. Then mom and dad began traveling around the country in their motorhome. Mom and dad both believed that traveling gave you an education. The kind that you couldn’t get anywhere else. When we were all at home we would travel across the country every summer. I never saw my father complain about not getting his way in life. He lived his life for his family and did what was necessary. I did see him get on his knees every night and pray. Often when I would look at the newspaper after my father read it, there would be engineering problem worked out on the pages. Honor and Integrity can’t be taught like math or science. It has to be learned by example. My father was that example to me.

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