Farewell to Roger

My mother just called to say that Roger has finally left us - 24 hours before his 76th birthday. At 2:35 am (Arizona time, which is two hours behind the East Coast), he took his last breath. Roger was never in pain, never took any pain medication, and basically died in his sleep. An enviable end, to be sure, all the while surrounded by my mom's tender loving care. He will be tremendously missed.

When I spoke to my mom yesterday afternoon, she was worried that it was winding down, so we got off the phone in a hurry so she could spend her time with him. I expected a call last night, but one never came. Craig and I spoke about Roger for a bit, and then toasted him with two pieces of See's chocolate covered marzipan - only hoisting a cup of Peet's coffee would have been better. They were Roger's two favorites, and he would have been pleased to know he was toasted with marzipan.

I once got him an entire box of it for Christmas. Roger never was much into gift giving or the holidays, but MAN, did he dive into that box of delicious chocolates.

Roger was a great writer and a published author, had a marvelous sense of humor, loved to travel, loved to read and do crossword puzzles, and had a keen curiosity of life and its people. He was a staunch Democrat. Roger was one of the most photogenic people I have ever met, and rarely took a bad picture. He had a wonderful, booming laugh, and loved silly people. He was unpretentious, kind, gentle, and friendly to everyone he met.

Roger leaves his two kids, Lerryn and Chris, and Lerryn's two sons, Devon and Jamie. Rog was wonderful with Rory and Fiona, and traveled to D.C. to meet Fiona last September. This is when the "stickering incident" took place (picture to be posted later). Have I mentioned that Rog was also a very good sport? And pretty patient!

If you'd like to send my mom, please drop me a line and I will send you her mailing address.

I will post his obituary (and a picture of his sweet face) later. Au revoir, Roger!