This month I lost one of my oldest friends, his name is Don.
I met Don in 1998, in Stuttgart Germany. He was such a wonderful friend; he would come over to my apartment and help me with my computer. He would hold my daughter, and she just loved him. She would reach her arms up to him, expecting him to pick her up, which he always did. BTW Don is like 6’3”, so he’s a big dude. I wish I had a picture of him, but Don didn’t like taking pictures. I did find some old pictures of when I was stationed in Stuttgart. I included the calendar because if you look on the 9th I had lunch with Don.
After he left Germany we lost touch, but when I retired from the Air Force in 2008 I found out from a mutual friend Don was in COS. Ramona, who was also stationed at Stuttgart, told me Don was working at the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) at Schriever SFB. I reached out to Don and of course he got me my first job as a contractor. We worked in the JEWL at Schriever and spent a year going to CENTCOM locations and building Early Warning procedures/processes for those in CENTCOM. Our friendship grew and we spent so much time walking and talking and becoming closer friends. Sadly again, no pictures – huge regret of mine.
After I left the JEWL, Don and I stayed in touched and still went on our walks. When I moved out of the MDA Don would still call me and talk in a funny voice and we’d talk about non-politically correct things… Don could always cheer me up and make me laugh. He was someone I could always count on. He was a wonderful man; strong, kind, intelligent, funny, giving, and had so many more attributes it’s impossible to list them all. All of which was echoed at his memorial, BTW it was so difficult.
Since I don’t have a picture of Don, I made a Fused Glass pocket heart and wrote on it and will take it to work with me. That way whenever I think of Don, I will see the heart and remember all the kindness and sage advice he gave me.
I just wish I was as kind as he was; what an amazing man. He loved his wife, his mother, his kids, and his grandkids. He told me he was retiring soon. I’m so sorry he didn’t get that chance. He served his country as an Air Force member for over 20 years, as a government contractor, and as a government civilian.
What a gift to his family, America, and to me.
Don, Thank you for being my friend, I love you. I will miss you forever.
Always,
Karen
