Memories of my father

Memories of my father

Good afternoon. On behalf of my Mother, brothers and myself, I want to thank you for coming. Today, we are here to celebrate the life of my father, James Warren Alsup.

Many people have their own memories of my father. For some it was Dad in his suit, visiting church. For others, he was the man walking around his cul-de-sac, greeting his neighbors and sharing his accomplished distance walked for that day. Some may remember Dad for his overalls and tortoise shell hat, riding on his lawnmower, waving at the people driving by. As my Mother said, “Daddy never met a stranger… to him everyone was a friend.”

I would like to share with you, who my father was to me. As a child, my father worked long hours, sunrise to sunset. To support his beloved family. So, the cherished days with Daddy were the weekends. Weather it was working in the garage on a car, where I would happily follow to give him tools. Or watching Charlie Chan or Audie Murphy or some “shoot-em-ups”. I enjoyed time with Dad. To me, my Dad was John Wayne.

As an adult, my father became my friend. We still had our days in the garage, fixing cars (mainly mine). And we still caught a “shoot-em-up” together on occasion. We always got a good laugh from watching “The Quiet Man”. He still was my John Wayne.

A father, a grandfather, a great-grandfather, a neighbor, a friend. My father will truly be missed. Once again, thank you for being here today.