single parenthood

This is my dad. He is the one responsible for my love of politics, teaching, and sports. He was born in 1938 on a cold October day in Tower, MN. He was the middle child of three with a sister older and younger. His loves today are his grandchild, children, gardening, fishing on Lake Vermilion, and keeping up with my brother's high school basketball team.

My father met my mom in the seventh grade and she couldn't stand him, he was always pulling her pigtails. It must of been love at first site. They started officially dating in tenth grade. The married the summer he graduated from the teacher's college in Duluth, which is now the University of MN, Duluth. On their honeymoon, he took her to Milwaukee to catch a Braves double header. My mom, tired and needing sleep, walked back to the car during the 3rd inning of the second game. My dad found her an hour after the game was over wondering around the parking lot still looking for the car. Milwaukee was the first big city my mom had ever been. It seems that their marriage started out on a great note they were married for 33 years and together for over 40.

They did love each other, raised 4 college educated good kids. He use to tell my mom how proud he was of his kids, whenever he run into someone, they always commented on what great adults his children where. My parents did their job right....

One year after my mom passed away, my dad started acting strangely. I would tell my brothers something wasn't right. Their answer was that he was just getting over mom's death. WRONG!!! It turned out that my dad is bipolar and from what the doctors tell us, my mom kept it under control. When he was down she would pick him up and so on... We are thankful daily that he found his new wife Norma about six years ago. Together they tend his garden in the summer, can his produce in the fall, and hang out in the cold winter months. BTW-He has planted his tomatoes for this coming spring already.

My first campaigns that I remember is McGovern VS Nixon and Jim Oberstar Vs. George Perpich. We have always been proud democrats and members of the DFL party. Paul Wellstone gave my dad credit for winning his first senate seat with a program my dad ran statewide, for middle and high school kids, to get people out to vote. The only time I was excused from school was to meet to Hubert Humphrey at the local union hall. He loved kids and came up with very creative projects for his students. One spring his Iron Range history class tapped the maple trees, made the syrup from the sap and sold it. One year he took 22 kids to Washington DC with the Close-up program and they raised every dime ($22,000) to go. Not to mention planting trees for the baseball team and coaching basketball.

We have all taken away his many loves into our families and those that we touch around. My dad is great!!

Have a great week all.....