Thank you to all who joined us this weekend to celebrate our dad.  Here is the family statement for those who could not come or watch the service.   The service will remain on the Anaheim First Church of the Nazarene facebook page.

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On behalf of my brother and our families, we would like to thank you all for coming today to celebrate our dad.  We know each of you had a special relationship with him.

Trying to figure out what to say started off hard.  What could we tell you all that you didn’t already know about him.  We found he doesn’t really have a lot of things, awards, or special skills to talk about, we found all of the memories of experiences, stories, and lessons we’ve learned from him and realized that our dad was a “gap filler” in our lives as well as yours. 

Let me explain what we mean by gap filler:

As a Father – Jeff’s high school friends knew they could count on him for someone to talk to, a ride, even having them ditch school for opening day baseball games.  For our cousin David when his parents passed, he checked in and help where he could. When my ex left, he stepped in, as Allison called him, “2nd Dad” for all dad related things.

As a Grandpa – he was known to all of Allison’s elementary and Jr high friends as grandpa. He made sure the kids that didn’t have someone show up on “grandparents” day felt special along with his grandkids doing the crafts or games with them too.  He loved Noah’s girlfriend and Allison’s boyfriend just as his own.

As Family – an employee of his was having surgery and had no family to reach out to so my dad went to visit them at the hospital. He chatted with them over the phone anytime they needed support.  He stepped in with our Aunt Lucy after his brother passed. He visited her once a week or every other week to make sure her facility was treating her right.  He would feed her and just being with her.  I remember the facility telling him she would ask if “that man” was coming again.  If they said yes, she would smile.

 As a Friend – when friends could no longer get out to meet at McDonald’s he went to sit with them in their homes, he visited shut-ins or those in care facilities who could no longer make it to church, he invited Dr’s, church and community members, and even Chick-Fil-A workers to Angel games, he would talk to anyone anywhere and make them feel like he cared for them. To his neighbors he was known as someone they could go to for HOA help or fixing something in their homes.  He met for lunch with co-workers who became friends and lifelong childhood friends often.

As a Teacher – at work he had his “Tom Tessier” T account papers so he could T account his way through an entry saying it was to help him understand but it was really to teach others, he would ask questions just to make sure you knew your stuff or to help you figure it out, he taught us how to manage our finances, do our own taxes and care for others. He would let the grandkids ask any question at bedtime and if he didn’t already know the answer he would research it before morning, and during the pandemic he helped Oliver 2 days a week with his preschool work.

As a Sports Coach – he tried to teach all the grandkids how to play baseball in his alley, he helped with Allison’s Jr High volleyball teams, he made Oliver practice soccer, and helped coach the kid’s basketball teams at church.

As a Cheerleader – Jeff doesn’t remember a game where dad wasn’t there to watch him, from little league to high school basketball.  He showed up to all our and our kids sporting events, choir shows, concerts, advents and any special event to support them.

As a babysitter – he was always there to watch our kids when they had a day off from school or when they were too sick to go to school.  He watched kids from church so their parents could have a night out.  And he was also a great dog sitter – my dog Biscuit loved going to grandpa’s house.

Financially – he gave, usually unknown to those who needed it, money for kids to go to church camp, tickets for shows, Lacrosse gear, school tuition, college books, computers, bathroom refreshes, VBS, help with rent/car payments, clothes, etc. – if he knew you needed it somehow it showed up as “extra” in his budget.

As a Taxi – he picked up Allison from school starting in preschool ending when she got her license at 16.  He also took her to school the first 2 years of high school.  He drove Allison and her friends anywhere they wanted to go.  He took his 50+ friends to the boat for the annual Catalina trip, to the lunches or to church, and there were countless drives to and from airports.

As an Advisor/Mentor – he was good at giving Godly advice even if it wasn’t what we wanted to hear.  He tried to only give it when asked but sometimes he gave it anyway. You could ask him any question about anything (cars, homes, taxes, laws, and so on) and he would research it and let you know what he found.

 We want to share one last thing with you from our dad, your friend, coach, advisor, mentor, family, grandpa, or father:

He believed the God of the Bible created him.

He was born a sinner and that meant one day he would die.

He also believed that Jesus is God, who came to earth and died on the cross for our sins.  Jesus arose from the dead, ascended to heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the father.  One day Jesus will return.

He believed that faith in Christ is the only way to heaven.

He believed there is nothing more important in life than seeking and accepting Christ as your savior, following, and glorifying him. 

God knew what he was doing when he placed our dad in our lives and yours.  We thank God for our dad – who he was and all he did for everyone.

Our dad was not perfect, but he was the perfect dad for us.  We know he is saving a place for us and YOU in heaven.