I am really missing Skip this morning. My brother died last July 8th at the age of 64, living a good 15 years longer than most people with a diagnosis of pulmonary stenosis.  I hate that he died alone with the phone in his hand apparently trying to call for help. Previously he had fallen in his newer home and spent 18 hours on the floor unable to call for help. After that we set up a help system for him...but he still died alone. (We live in different states) I can only hope it was a sudden heart attack and he didn't have to go thru that fear again of struggling alone.

He was a Viet Nam vet, one of those who volunteered early on because they believed in the War. At 18 I guess it is easy to believe in anything without questioning it too much. That had a profound effect on Brother...this non-questioning approach to politics. It was so profound he spent his life questioning any and everything.  He was a patriot in the truest sense of the word. He loved America and loved living in America....and was clear there was work to do to keep America the dream it had been for so long.

 He knew there were things about our system that needed fixing and so the work of *maintaining* a democracy must continue. In other words being an American citizen was not only a privilege, but came with responsibilities and obligations as well. And one had not only a right to speak truth to power but an obligation to speak truth to power. Skip could (and often did ) start letter writing campaigns at the drop of a hat.

I miss our morning 'telecoffees' where we argued about most everything.  His activism stretched from supporting youth groups in his church to lobbying for increased benefits for veterans and manning information booths so veterans would know what benefits were available to them.  In a world where most relationships,  even among relatives, are fleeting at best, Skip and I 'got' each other and discovered we had more in common than not toward the end. And finally, toward the end he began talking to me about Viet Nam and his tours of duty there and I cried and cried thinking about what memories such young men returned home with.

He was my my brother, my friend, my confidante...and my hero.

Below is the song ,  Willing, Skip  produced with his son, Brian,  the proceeds of which go to the Wounded Warrior project.

On this Memorial Day, peace to you and good thoughts are sent to our soldiers serving on this Memorial Day weekend.

Patie

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