Happy Birthday, Bucky!

A.Rogers 2011

A.Rogers 2011

This post is dedicated to my dear grandfather who died in 1980, but continues to influence the lives of everyone in my family still. We think about our dear Bucky and talk about him often. Even little Jude seems to know him and knows he is not the same person as "Papa." Several months ago Kelly was playing one of his favorite games where he points out people he knows in pictures on the wall at his house. We say, "Where's Mama?" "Where's Dada?" "Where's Mimi and Papa?" and he walks over to the pictures, looks around, and slaps the correct one. Well, one day, Kelly said, "Where's Mimi and Bucky?" and Jude looked around for a moment and slapped the picture of Mimi and Bucky, not Mimi and Papa, and repeated "Mimi and Bucky." Kelly later asked Erin if she had ever talked to him about Bucky and she said no. We were all amazed!

"Bucky," (William Allen Myers, Jr. or, Bill, to his family and close friends) was the man who, like the words of one of Brad Paisley's songs, was the father and grandfather that he "didn't have to be." I am grateful for his example of love, faith, hard work, dedication to that which he believed in, and his patriotism. A son, a brother, a husband, a father, a grandfather, a patriot, a life long Free Mason dedicated to serving the community, and a friend. I love you precious grandfather!

"And then all of a sudden
Oh, it seemed so strange to me
How we went from something's missing
To a family
Lookin' back all I can say
About all the things he did for me
Is I hope I'm at least half the dad
That he didn't have to be"

- Brad Paisley