A kind and gentle uncle to my wife and devoted brother to my mother-in-law – Waldo spent his whole life in the small town of Island Falls Maine.  Even in his eighties, this man still has a mischievous twinkle in his eye.  An undertaker by profession – he loves to recall the time he toured me through his parlor and tricked me into seeing my first cadaver – he eyes light up when he retells this story to me.

Many tales have been told about his generosity – the most memorable is the one where he and his brother were in the second World War and sent back money to my mother-in-law monthly to keep her in college at the University of Maine – an educational opportunity they did not have.  He also adored his nieces (my wife and her sister) – it is funny how they always seemed to win at cribbage.  Or how about all the times we visited and were escorted to his bureau where he retrieved ripening tomatoes from the third drawer down – I still have memories of those juicy, fresh bites I would take.

He lives in a small one-story home and during my visit this late winter I could see his roof and plumbing needs a little repair – I will check in this spring to see if they have been fixed.  If not I may take a trip up to see if I can help – anyone out there want to lend a hand?