Funeral Eulogy for Richard Whittington “Dick” Vose, Jr. given byhis son Jeffery Vose, Saturday, January 17, 2015 at the First Baptist Church, Waldoboro, Maine

Dear friends and family, thank you for joining us here today to remember our friend, my dad, Richard Whittington Vose Jr.

Today I would like to spend some time with you to help us remember Dad, Dick, Richard, Dickie.  To all of us he was a special man who in one way or another touched us and became our friend.

If we had a few days, I am sure each one of us would have a story or two about Dick and how he made you smile, or laugh, cry, sometimes he could even make you shake your head in confusion.  That was his way.  Dad was a wonderful man who had his own special beat.  He wasn't looking for the next big thing.  He loved his life and the path he had chosen.  He truly was a man who took time to live life at a comfortable pace and he always, always stopped to smell the roses.

With that, I would like to share a few facts about Dad.

First, he was a man of God

Anyone who spent any time at all with Dick would soon come to know he had a strong faith.  His table and nightstand were covered with daily devotionals, study books, and of course a Bible.  He would tell you he was a terrible student but that doesn't mean he didn't learn.

What he learned was God's Word gave a clear picture of what it meant to love.  Dad was patient, he was kind, he didn't envy, or boast or act prideful.  He didn't dishonor others, he wasn't self-seeking, he was slow to anger, keeping no record of evil.  He knew God's love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Dad was a living practice of what he had learned from all those years of study.

He wasn't a preachy kind of man but it was clear, there was a humble spirit that attracted people to him.  It was easy for Dad to meet someone for the first time and in a few minutes become their friend.

On one occasion here in Maine, I was visiting with my sons, Eric and Josh.  We were at the Boothbay Railway Museum.  At the train stop, Dad started talking with a boy who was Eric’s age.  While sitting there, Dad discovered from his parents they were neighbors.  So by the time we left the Museum, we were invited over to see their horses, and for Eric and their son to play together.

It was that easy for Dad to become your friend.  Sometimes it could drive you crazy.  In crowded fairs or exhibits, you would loose him and he would be off chatting with a new acquaintance.  One of Dad's last acts of kindness was helping a woman in the store who had dropped some fruit.  He was just that way, a great example to all of what a servant leader looked like and how it was supposed to be done.  Truly, Dad loved the Lord and he practiced what he preached

Second, he loved his wife.  Jean, as you said, you and Dad have been married 35 years and I know for sure, he still referred to you as his bride.  He was better because he had you in his life.  He knew that and he wasn't afraid to share his love for you in all situations.  The scripture on their wedding plaque is Ruth 1:16 “where you go, I will go and where you stay, I will stay.  Your people will be my people and your God my God.”

And they did.  Fixing up apartments and a home in Worcester.  They were together.  Gardening, Church, pets, bees, bees and more bees.  Together.  Moving to Maine and starting a new life here, together.  Traveling to Alaska, Mass, Rhode Island, Vermont, Maine, even Disney World, they were together.

And last Saturday when Dad said goodbye.  Dad and Jean were together.  Dad had love, and he was proud to let others know whom he loved.  Stories are written and movies are made of what lasting love looks like.  But for us, for me, he was a knight who loved his bride and no silver screen could ever capture that story.

Now the good stuff. 

Dad loved his children (grandkids included)

Dad had 4 children he called his own.  Myself, Karen, Glenn, and Lisa.  As kids, we were blessed with Halloweens where he would hide on the roof and scare all the kids in the neighborhood with a witch on a rope.  Swinging it down at just the right moment to scare everyone.  Christmas eves where he would see a jet going overhead and say “is that Santa??”

During the blizzard of ‘78 Dad built a luge track down our back hill, coated it with water and made banked turns and everything.  Road trips to Canada, camping; there are so many camping stories I don't even have time for that.  Hockey practices and games.  Karen, Glenn, Lisa. Sorry for that.  Bird watching on Wachusett Mountain.  Quabbin Reservoir, Sturbridge Village, Deerfield Fair, back roads, any back road was an adventure for dad.  Eustis Maine.  There was an area Dad loved.  And don't forget the dad whistle.  That's how he got us to come home.  He would whistle and we knew what that meant.  Time to go home.  Bad news is, so did every other kid in the neighborhood.  We all got teased, “time to go home” they would say.  But you know, I think some of them wished their dad could whistle like that.

Dad loved his kids; we all know that to be true.  But he was even prouder when he was able to watch us grow.  He was able to see some of him had rubbed off on each one of us.  All those car rides, camping trips, and every adventure, they were moments where Dad just shared who he was.  And it did rub off.  We are the lucky ones.  Richard was our dad.

But in true Dad fashion, he didn't stop there.  Tomomi came to Worcester from Japan and I bet it's safe to say, Dad considered her his daughter too.  Nancy, you are more than a neighbor to Dad.  You too are part of the family.

And don't forget the grandkids ~ Scott, Eric, Katelyn, Josh, Ryan, Andrew, and Riley.

I know Grampa Dick loved his kids but the grandkids, they are special.  In all my phone conversations he would always ask first, “how are the kids doing” I knew what he meant; just like his fingerprints were all over my life, he wanted to make sure my hands were all over their lives too.  As a son, Dad was in his own way still teaching me what it was to be a man, to be a husband, to be a dad.

I love you Dad.

Last but not least, Dad loved his friends.  As we all know, Dick was a friend you were glad to have.  Growing up we would often travel to homes of friends whom Dad had met while growing up in Newton, Mass.  To this day the names, Warren, Roger, Howie, Alan, Max, Warren, Bob, Bill, and George are names that have been on Dickie's lips since he was a boy.  But the list of friends doesn't end there.  As Dad traveled through life, he was like a swifter.  He gathered friends all along the way.  I know for me it was a learning experience.  Learning how to become a friend and to be a friend to others.  Even though everyone Dad has ever met could not be here, I know there is a list of people who send their wishes for us here today.  So to friends from the neighborhood, past co-workers, camping friends, cousins, bird watchers, beekeepers, gardeners, Ocean Pointers, neighbors, church members, wood workers, and all.  Know you are special in Dad's heart.  He truly loved his friends.

In closing, I would like to read a scripture that I feel exemplifies Dad's life.  It is from the book of Psalms, chapter 1 verse 1-3

Blessed is the one

who does not walk in step with the wicked

or stand in the way that sinners take

or sit in the company of mockers,

but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,

and who meditates on his law day and night. 

That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season

and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers.

We love you Dad!

Thank You!