Remembering Dad: My Father Loved This COUNTRY!

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In honor of Memorial Day, I'm honoring my father's memory by sharing some of his favorite memories :)

My father, who served as Chief Petty Officer for the Coast Guard in World War II, was a consummate patriot. He was quite literally willing to die to protect our freedoms; the National Anthem brought tears to his eyes every time he heard it.

He loved telling stories about his travels during the war.  My favorite stories were about the terrible hazing protocol that new recruits underwent while crossing the equator for the first time. Barbaric as the rite of passage was, he would laugh fondly as though it were the best time of his life; I think he was proud to be part of that piece of history. 

Sadly, the last five years of Dad’s life were marked by severe dementia. With dementia, the new stories and day-to-day routines are impossible to remember: names were forgotten; conversations were repeated. And although he often forgot to feed himself, he would feed the dogs over and over.

But thankfully, mercifully, the old memories remain intact. Dad could tell his Coast Guard stories as if they happened just yesterday. As his dementia worsened, telling those stories brought out the best in him; I’ll never forget the sparkle in his eyes and pure joy on his face as he animatedly reenacted scenes from his glory days. My sister and I never tired of listening to his stories; we encouraged him to tell them every day. He was so proud to have served this county and loved being able to say that he was a Veteran.  He instilled that same love for this country in my sister and me.  I am so proud to have been blessed with such a great man as my father.

~ Lori

Lori Holmgren, RN, MSN