The passing of my father, a quiet good man

My dad died today, about a month short of his 96th birthday.  It came after a brief downturn in his health, and the proximate cause was pneumonia.  Until several days ago, he lived alone and took care of himself.
Since the death of Mom several years ago, his answer to my weekly query as to how he was doing was always, "Well, I'm still here."  He was ready to check out and be with Mom.

Dad was raised with his eight siblings on a farm in Burlington, Wyoming, a small, dry town east of Cody. His mother died when he was nine years old, and his sisters took over raising the family.
After active duty during WWII, he worked as a civilian for the Army employing his engineering degree from the University of Wyoming.  For many years, he was the Chief of the Mechanical Research and Development Lab at Ft. Belvoir, Virginia.

That's a pretty dry description of a hard-working, kind man, who took his commitment to the Gospel of Jesus Christ very seriously.  Dad served as the first Recorder in the Washington, DC LDS temple, and then in the presidency of that temple, serving nineteen years in total.  Many times I would find him seated in the living room, quietly reading the scriptures.

My father was the most honest, straightforward person I have known closely.  The things that I did, or didn't do growing up were based largely on my desire to not disappoint him.  There are small things that I hope I remember forever; falling asleep on the back seat of the '54 Ford as he drove home in the dark with the radio playing big band music, the care with which he outfitted me at a camping store before my first Scout outing, waiting with him at a service station while the car was up on the lift and asking for a candy bar...

I will miss my father.  However, if I arrive at the end of this stage of existence in as good shape concerning the things that really matter, I will call it a win.

Dave