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Note: Dad SOURCES: Family records
BIRTH:Birth cert , filed Ticonderoga , Essex, NY #29.
Once of Essex JCT VT.
I was with Dad when he died at his home on Lake George, in Ticonderoga, NY
(Written by his children)
Thank you so much for coming.
It's a beautiful tribute to both my father and my mother
that you're here today to join with us in celebrating and honoring
the beautiful life of our father and husband.
Dad was extremely devoted to his wife and his family.
While he may not have been what might be referred to as a 90's kind of guy,
he never washed any dishes or changed any diapers,
he could be more correctly referred to as a Dorothy's "Kind of Guy"
he was a devoted and loving husband., in all the ways that counted
As a father, he was great.
He played an active role in all our lives while we were growing up.
He was a Scoutleader to the boys who not only learned by his examples,
but also by his involvement. He taught his boys how to be men
and by example taught his daughter what to look for in a man.
He and mom always encouraged us in our activities
They both ensured we had full and secure childhood's.
We always knew we were loved unconditionally.
I'm sure his grandchildren clearly remember getting caught in Grandpa's trap.
His trap was his arms wrapped tightly around them as he closed his eyes
and pretended to fall asleep - while they wriggled there way out of the bottom
of his arms. Once out of his embrace, they marveled at how Grandpa always failed
to realize that they had escaped. Saying Grandpa, I'm out!
And then quickly jumping back in his arms eagerly anticipating the next escape.
Or how he invited their affection by pretending he didn't want to be kissed,
Only to be rewarded by the children's redoubled efforts in peppering him with
the kisses he had been seeking all along.
Dad was the eldest of seven children, 2 girls, Ann and Peggy, and five boys,
Dad, and his brothers Melvin, Bill, Norm and Tom.
While I can't speak of their childhood's together with any detail,
we have spent endless hours (aunts, uncles and cousins) together at our home on
Lake George Avenue, our camp and at each other's homes.
Dad's sisters and brothers looked up to him and they shared their lives with him.
He loved each of them, along with his sisters and brothers in law,
and many nieces and nephews, all of whom grew up hearing the same silly songs
and the same stories as his own children and grandchildren.
To all of you, please know how much you were adored by our father.
As a friend and co-worker Dad will long be remembered for his colorful anecdotes,
his amazing and sometimes questionable accomplishments, and his fun loving nature.
His attitude towards work was to make it interesting, who could forget the
mysterious case of the ransomed teddy bear?
Dad always enjoyed sports and games of every type.
He was an outstanding athlete at Ti High School where he excelled at baseball,
basketball and football and where he earned the hard-won nickname of pivoty,
a name by which he still proudly answered to. In later years he continued his
competitive spirit by fielding his own business bowling team in Ticonderoga
creating an annual 4th of July softball game pitting a loose configuration
of Provoncha's against all comers on the field behind his beloved camp.
Still later in his years at Essex Junction who could forget Dad's catchy slogan
"Win with Fred" and they often did whether it was softball, basketball or bowling.
Of course there were the occasional times when Dad'was forced to try to gracefully extricate himself from a boast made in haste. An image of a man completely bandaged head to foot sitting with a seemingly pregnant woman at his side on the end of the dock at camp comes to mind. This enabled Dad and his sister in law to bow out of a canoe race in which they clearly couldn't have possibly won or even finished.
Dad leaves us with some questions to ponder:
Did dad really have a childhood friend with a left foot so huge that his mother
brought him to a blacksmith to be shod, rather than be fitted for ordinary shoes?
Did dad really have a garden that produced plants that had fruit growing on the top and with vegetables on the bottom?
Is the father of the groom truly so useless at his own son's wedding that he couldn't even get a ride to the church?
Is it true that mulligan stew can only be made by catching the female mulligans
in the first few minutes after the sun goes down?
Is it ever wise to use as a brakeman on a Bobsled a kid who can't speak English
and doesn't understand the word stop?
When Dad was last diagnosed at the hospital, he had to spend two weeks there.
Mom never left his side, literally. She spent each night on a cot at the bottom
of his hospital bed, rather than staying with one of her children lived nearby.
As his health continued to fail, and we brought him home, she cared for him in
the most loving way humanly possible - again, very rarely leaving his side.
When it came time for him to go, she gently and lovingly passed him into God's care.
To our friends at High Peaks Hospice, thank you. Your friendly faces and gentle,
loving ways made this difficult time easier for all of us.
Your service was invaluable and there aren't words to express our appreciation.
Dad, we will honor your name, your life and your memory forever...
Fred
Robert
John
Julie Ann
Thank you again everyone for coming. God bless you all.
SOURCES: FAMILY RECORDS
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