Thursday April 27, 2006 my Dad suddenly lost his battle with his congenital heart condition (pseudo-truncus arteriosus). He fought a long hard battle. When he was born in 1941 doctors told his parents they had no way to treat it and he would be lucky to live to be 3 years old. By the time doctors had developed surgical procedures to treat the condition, his body and heart vessels had adapted too well and cardiologists determined surgery would have been too risky. So for 65 years my Dad lived his life as full as possible. He had three children, and along side my mom, he was our biggest fan. He coached our soccer teams, cheered for us at swim meets, and nervously (but patiently) taught us all how to drive a stick shift car. He traveled around the world with my mom and enjoyed time with his grandson; time spent "fixing" things in the house, kicking the soccer ball around, and enjoying frozen custard at Ted Drews. Despite his congenital heart condition he always made plans for the future and looked forward to a new day. His passing was very sudden, which was best for him and most difficult for us. He was a loving husband, dad, and papa.