With much love and sadness, I share that my father passed away this weekend after 92 years of a life well lived. He was a man of great intellect, incredible curiosity, a passion for art, architecture, and music, and a lifelong commitment to progressive values—peace, justice, and human rights. He loved cats and dogs and the beaches of Cape Cod. But above all else, he was a man who passionately loved his family, especially my mother, whom he adored for 67 years of marriage.
Those of you who follow my blog may have seen the occasional comments my dad left on the blog. He was a devoted reader of the blog and supportive of and fascinated in the family history I was uncovering. He also was a constant source of information about his family and, most importantly, the inspiration for all the research I have done about all my paternal lines (which is probably 80-90% of what I’ve done since I have had much more luck finding information about my father’s side than my mother’s side). I will miss him deeply and will undoubtedly share more about him as time goes on.
For now I am taking a short break from blogging, but I will return soon because I know he would have wanted me to continue telling the stories of his many relatives.
Here are just a few photos.
RIP. He sounds like he was a wonderful family man.
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He was, Linda. Thank you.
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Amy, my heartfelt condolences to you and your family on the passing of your father. Sending good thoughts your way. Take all the time you need.
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Thanks, Cathy.
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Sad to hear, “May his memory be a blessing to you”Hugs, Liz
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Thanks, Liz.
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I’m sorry for your loss, Amy! 😦
Such a beautiful tribute to your dad, he sounds like an amazing man, and I’m sure he will be very missed…
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Thank you, Lana. He will be.
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My heart-felt condolences go out to you, Amy! Your post is a great tribute to your father, who has given you so much and who has enriched your life with his love and dedication to you and the family.
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Thank you so much, Peter.
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Amy, this is one of the hardest times you will face in life. How fortunate we are who have been blessed with such loving and caring fathers, who were never afraid to show their love and passion for their family. May all that you’ve shared comfort you, now and always.
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Thank you for these wonderful thoughts.
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My sincere condolences.
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Thanks, Ralph.
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My heartfelt condolences to you and your family. Sending up a special prayer for strength during this difficult time.
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Thank you.
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May your dear father rest in peace, Amy. What a remarkable man. May your memories bless you with his presence in your life. Many hugs.
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Thanks, Luanne.
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Amy,
My heartfelt condolences to you and your family for your loss.
What wonderful photos of a wonderful life .. a beautiful tribute to your dad.
Love, Marcy
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Thank you, Marcy.
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Aw, I’m so sorry, Amy. He looks to be one of those people with a sparkle in his eyes. It shows. It shows as well that yours was a good relationship, something that can be a source of comfort in the days and weeks and months ahead. Thank you for sharing your photos. Sending hugs to you. ❤
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Thanks so much, Karen. You are right about the sparkle in his eyes and about our relationship.
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Uncle John was the best. I always enjoyed talking to him and seeing him smile. Jeff was inspired by his thinking and the kids especially loved the idea of having an uncle who looked like Sean Connery. We will miss him!
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He and Jeff did really have a special relationship, much more than just uncle and nephew. And he loved you and Zach and Jessie very much.
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I love the photos. He will remain in our hearts !
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Thank you.
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Thinking of you as you grieve the loss of your father. He must have been a very special man. May he live on in your memory and in the memories of all those who knew and loved him.
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Thanks, Ruth. He was.
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I am lost for words…
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Amy, I know words will never fill the void you’re feeling right now and soon you will possibly feel exhausted if you hear the words, “I’m sorry” one more time. But please know I regret that you have to endure this loss. Please take care of yourself.
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Thanks, GP. I think about how you have used your blog to honor the memory of your own father and what a wonderful way that is to keep him alive. I am hoping that my blog will do the same for mine.
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I’m certain you will. Your memories of him will do the same for your father, as it has done for mine.
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I am so sorry to hear this, Amy. I’m sending you hugs and positive thoughts. x
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Thanks, Trisha.
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I am so very sorry for you loss Amy. My thoughts are with you and your whanau.
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Thank you, Su.
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Oh Amy I am so sorry to hear this. He sounds like a truly wonderful man. Thank you for sharing those lovely photographs. What a handsome kind man he was. All my love and thoughts with you and your family at this time. X
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Thanks so much, Alex. Yes, he was quite good looking.
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Amy, I am so very sorry for your loss. The word “adored” when speaking about the love your father had for your mother reminds me so much of the love my parents shared. I hope the loving memories you have of your dad will help you as you move through this phase of your life. It’s certainly something no one wants to ever have to go through yet some how you will make it through. My best to you and your family.
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Thank you, Debi. Yes, those models for marriage are very inspiring.
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Very sad Amy, it all takes time. You will have such happy family memories.
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Thanks, Shirley. I do, and I will.
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Thank you.
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My condolences to you Amy. Your father sounded like an inspirational man. Wonderful photos of him.
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Thank you.
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What a beautiful tribute to your father. I am so sorry for your families loss. My thoughts will be with you during this transitional time. May his memory be a blessing ~ Sharon
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Thank you, Sharon.
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Amy, we are saddened to hear of your father’s death. What a wonderful man. Sending love from the Katzenstein cousins. Bernadette
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Thanks so much, Bernadette. I hope you and Joe are well.
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Amy, we are so sorry to hear of your father’s death. What a wonderful man. Love from the Katzenstein cousins.
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So very sorry, Amy… ((( hugs)))
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Thanks so much.
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I wish I had words to help, but I don’t. Wishing you the best in these worst of times is all I can do.
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Thanks, Charles.
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Dear Amy,
I am sorry to hear about your father, and send you blessings for comfort. I am glad for the love you clearly felt for him and from him. May that sustain you, even though it is also painful.
We have a bit of a parallel experience; my dear mother-in-law (mother-in-heart) died early this past Saturday, 2/16 after about 10 days of being either unresponsive or barely responsive.
Wishing you everything you need during this tender time!
With love, Meg 510-821-2561 cellphone
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I am sorry about your mother-in-law. She died the same day as my dad. May we both be comforted with our memories. xoxo
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Amy, this post was a lovely tribute to your father. It sounds like he was a wonderful man – I’m sure you will miss him greatly. Best wishes for peace and comfort for you and your family. Take care.
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Thank you so much for your thoughts.
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My condolences to you Amy. All my love and thoughts with you and your familie at this time.
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Thank you, Regina.
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Sorry to hear of your loss, Amy. I pray for the repose of your father. May loving memories of him bring you comfort.
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Thank you, Emily. And I hope you are feeling better soon.
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Sorry for your loss.
Sent from my iPad
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Thank you.
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Amy, my heartfelt condolences to you and your family at this sad time. I am so sorry for your loss. My condolences to your mother who must be heartbroken. I’m sorry I never had a chance to meet him; he sounds wonderful.
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Thank you, Sue. I am so glad I found you and your grandfather’s story so I could share it with my dad while he was still alive. And we will have to meet ourselves and toast them both. I will return to posting your grandfather’s family album in a week or so.
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I’m really so sorry to hear of your loss. Such a beautiful tribute to a great guy.
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Thanks so much, Gary.
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Such kindness in that face! I’m so sorry for your loss.
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Thank you, Frederick.
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Sorry for your loss Amy.
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Thank you.
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I’m so sorry to hear of your loss. Your father looks to have been a beautiful person both inside and out. You can see his kindness in his eyes. You were so lucky to have had him all of those years. My father just turned 84, and I dread the day he leaves this earthly life
No matter how long they are with us, we are never really prepared for their deaths, are we?
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No, we aren’t. I get comfort from knowing he lived a good long life and that I was so fortunate to have 66 years ago. But it is nevertheless hard to believe he is gone.
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My condolences about your dad. I just lost mine too recently and wrote his eulogy (on my WP blog).
I love the pictures you shared of your dad (and mom) here. And I totally understand about taking a break from blogging for awhile.
Much love and many blessings as you grieve and heal. ❤️🦋🌀
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I am so sorry for your loss as well. I will look for the eulogy on your blog. It is a hard time, filled with challenges I hadn’t anticipated. But they say time heals. Thank you for reaching out to me.
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Thank you so much, Amy. Yes, each day my grief eases, then I feel guilty about that, and then I consciously choose to let that go. It really almost feels like a wound healing. That process. Ugh. 🥴
My dad’s eulogy is the most recent post on my blog. 😉
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That describes how I feel so well. Thank you. I just finished reading your eulogy for your father. It is very beautiful and very sweet. He sounds like he was a wonderful husband and father. From the early photos, it seems he was a good deal younger than my father, who died at 92. Yet your dad lived to be a great-grandfather also. How wonderful!
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Ah, yes. I saw your dad lived longer than my dad. My dad was almost 80. I sure thought he’d live a lot longer, as he looked the picture of health. As well, he was still getting around great, traveling and such.
Thank you for reading his eulogy, Amy. You’re so sweet!
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He was relatively young. What a shock it must have been for your family, especially after losing your mother less than two years before.
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