Grandpa
My oldest cousin Laurie wrote this about Grandpa and read it at his funeral:
Stanley John Liddle
"Grandpa"
In our memories of Grandpa, we all remember him having specific characteristics and traits that we will always remember when we reflect back on his life. We were all very blessed for the time we had with Grandpa, and blessed that he lived a full and happy life.
There is a passage from the Bible that describes Grandpa, it is found in Galatians 5:22-23, "But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."
Grandpa loved his family and friends unconditionally. Through good times and bad he was there for us. He always had a smile and wink and made us feel welcome and at home, and he always had a stock of cookies or candy. (And we all knew where the candy dish was.)
Grandpa loved it when people stopped by the house. Even if he was in the barn working on something or on his way out the door to dinner, he would take time to stop and invite you to come in and visit for a while. You never felt like you were intruding or visiting at a bad time. You were welcome anytime. He loved to visit. He would always make a point to talk about something we were involved with, whether it was trucks, cars, school, college, our jobs, farming, sports, gardening, or a trip we took. He would always make a point to ask about our special interests, and he would always add and point out information he read or saw on TV relating to our interests. If our names were in the paper for an achievement or an award, he would make a point to mention it and say good job or nice article. He made it a priority to be involved in our lives and make us feel special.
We also gained a lot of great memories from our visits, and a lot of insight. We learned what it was like growing up in the depression (how they never felt poor), walks to the old school house, and how neighbors used to work together helping to plant and harvest crops.
He also shared some of his passions with us. We learned about cars (when to inspect them, change the oil or tires). We learned about nature; types of birds, how to identify animals by their tracks, the different types of foods that birds and squirrels enjoyed.
We also got to play with a lot of gadgets, remote controls, feather dusters, walkie-talkies, weather radios, and many more. He loved his gadgets.
He also loved his pond, he loved it when ducks swam, or when deer would drink from the pond, once in a while there would be a badger, or a muskrat, but I think he always loved the pond because all of us have great memories of the pond. We caught frogs in the pond, skipped stones along it, at one point in time Grandpa cleared it up so we could swim in it, we rowed boats on it, some of us apparently rode our bikes into it, and in later years when some were interested in fishing, he added fish to the pond. He did all of these things for our enjoyment, it brought joy to him, to see us happy.
Grandpa also loved his projects. He was a self taught engineer, mechanic and inventor. He was amazing at fixing and building things. He usually didn't need the instruction manual to do it, sometimes this resulted in parts left after assembly, which were always "spare parts." He really enjoyed being included in projects and wanted to be involved. He loved working on tractors, cards, restoring trucks, building chicken houses, horse wagons, wiring, repairing bikes, repairing farm equipment, and planting gardens. He was always patient, he wanted to make sure it was done correctly. If it didn't work the first time, he would patiently try something else until it was fixed. He never turned you way or made it seem like he didn't have time if you needed his help on a project. This is how Grandpa was, unselfish with his time and always willing to be involved with his family.
He never wanted any special credit for the things he did for us. If you needed a part or something from the store, he would go out of his way to bring it to you, and when he brought it to you, he would make it seem like he was just passing by or in the area. He didn't fool us. We all knew he took time to find what we needed and made a special trip, but he never wanted anyone to make a big deal out of it.
Grandpa was great to his family, but he was also great about being kind and caring about all people. He was always welcoming to our friends, our girlfriends, and our boyfriends. He always made a point to know their names and find out something important about them.
He loved to meet people and could carry on a conversation with anybody. He always pointed out the good in people, and we can never remember him saying anything unkind about anyone. He truly cared about people, his kindness was true and from his heart.
We will remember Grandpa for his love and his patience, all of us grandchildren never heard him yell or raise his voice (his children may tell or remember differently). We also remember his great sense of style. He was a great looking man, and made a point to be well groomed.
He found joy in his life through his family and friends. He loved get-togethers, holidays, going out to dinner, traveling, and working on projects. He loved to laugh and had a great sense of humor. He loved to play, you might see him swinging, riding a scooter or bike, or on a four-wheeler. We always felt loved. He was faithful, he read the Bible and lived his life to a high set of morals. He was a great example and role-model.
He loved us and knew us to the very end. For those yet to be born, and those too young to remember him, it's our job to teach them about the great man that their great-grandfather was.
And if you were lucky enough to know him, know that there are pieces and traits of him in all of us, whether it be his love of people, his patience, his stubbornness, his work ethic, his style, his sense of humor, his kindness, or his mechanical and inventive ways. We all carry part of him with us.
As we leave here today, we can honor Grandpa or Great Grandpa or Dad or Stan, by loving each other, not saying bad things about anyone, not asking for anything in return for the things we do for others, and above all, loving people like he did.
The End.
This was on the prayer cards that were handed out at the calling hours. (Mom picked out the verse). It makes me cry. :(
In Loving Memory of
Stanley John Liddle
July 20, 1923
September 12, 2008
"Come to Me"
God saw you getting tired,
and a cure was not to be.
So he put his arms around you,
and whispered "Come to Me".
With tearful eyes we watched you,
and saw you pass away.
Although we loved you dearly,
we could not make you stay.
A golden heart stopped beating,
hard working hands at rest.
God broke our hearts to prove to us
He only takes the best.
Stanley John Liddle
"Grandpa"
In our memories of Grandpa, we all remember him having specific characteristics and traits that we will always remember when we reflect back on his life. We were all very blessed for the time we had with Grandpa, and blessed that he lived a full and happy life.
There is a passage from the Bible that describes Grandpa, it is found in Galatians 5:22-23, "But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."
Grandpa loved his family and friends unconditionally. Through good times and bad he was there for us. He always had a smile and wink and made us feel welcome and at home, and he always had a stock of cookies or candy. (And we all knew where the candy dish was.)
Grandpa loved it when people stopped by the house. Even if he was in the barn working on something or on his way out the door to dinner, he would take time to stop and invite you to come in and visit for a while. You never felt like you were intruding or visiting at a bad time. You were welcome anytime. He loved to visit. He would always make a point to talk about something we were involved with, whether it was trucks, cars, school, college, our jobs, farming, sports, gardening, or a trip we took. He would always make a point to ask about our special interests, and he would always add and point out information he read or saw on TV relating to our interests. If our names were in the paper for an achievement or an award, he would make a point to mention it and say good job or nice article. He made it a priority to be involved in our lives and make us feel special.
We also gained a lot of great memories from our visits, and a lot of insight. We learned what it was like growing up in the depression (how they never felt poor), walks to the old school house, and how neighbors used to work together helping to plant and harvest crops.
He also shared some of his passions with us. We learned about cars (when to inspect them, change the oil or tires). We learned about nature; types of birds, how to identify animals by their tracks, the different types of foods that birds and squirrels enjoyed.
We also got to play with a lot of gadgets, remote controls, feather dusters, walkie-talkies, weather radios, and many more. He loved his gadgets.
He also loved his pond, he loved it when ducks swam, or when deer would drink from the pond, once in a while there would be a badger, or a muskrat, but I think he always loved the pond because all of us have great memories of the pond. We caught frogs in the pond, skipped stones along it, at one point in time Grandpa cleared it up so we could swim in it, we rowed boats on it, some of us apparently rode our bikes into it, and in later years when some were interested in fishing, he added fish to the pond. He did all of these things for our enjoyment, it brought joy to him, to see us happy.
Grandpa also loved his projects. He was a self taught engineer, mechanic and inventor. He was amazing at fixing and building things. He usually didn't need the instruction manual to do it, sometimes this resulted in parts left after assembly, which were always "spare parts." He really enjoyed being included in projects and wanted to be involved. He loved working on tractors, cards, restoring trucks, building chicken houses, horse wagons, wiring, repairing bikes, repairing farm equipment, and planting gardens. He was always patient, he wanted to make sure it was done correctly. If it didn't work the first time, he would patiently try something else until it was fixed. He never turned you way or made it seem like he didn't have time if you needed his help on a project. This is how Grandpa was, unselfish with his time and always willing to be involved with his family.
He never wanted any special credit for the things he did for us. If you needed a part or something from the store, he would go out of his way to bring it to you, and when he brought it to you, he would make it seem like he was just passing by or in the area. He didn't fool us. We all knew he took time to find what we needed and made a special trip, but he never wanted anyone to make a big deal out of it.
Grandpa was great to his family, but he was also great about being kind and caring about all people. He was always welcoming to our friends, our girlfriends, and our boyfriends. He always made a point to know their names and find out something important about them.
He loved to meet people and could carry on a conversation with anybody. He always pointed out the good in people, and we can never remember him saying anything unkind about anyone. He truly cared about people, his kindness was true and from his heart.
We will remember Grandpa for his love and his patience, all of us grandchildren never heard him yell or raise his voice (his children may tell or remember differently). We also remember his great sense of style. He was a great looking man, and made a point to be well groomed.
He found joy in his life through his family and friends. He loved get-togethers, holidays, going out to dinner, traveling, and working on projects. He loved to laugh and had a great sense of humor. He loved to play, you might see him swinging, riding a scooter or bike, or on a four-wheeler. We always felt loved. He was faithful, he read the Bible and lived his life to a high set of morals. He was a great example and role-model.
He loved us and knew us to the very end. For those yet to be born, and those too young to remember him, it's our job to teach them about the great man that their great-grandfather was.
And if you were lucky enough to know him, know that there are pieces and traits of him in all of us, whether it be his love of people, his patience, his stubbornness, his work ethic, his style, his sense of humor, his kindness, or his mechanical and inventive ways. We all carry part of him with us.
As we leave here today, we can honor Grandpa or Great Grandpa or Dad or Stan, by loving each other, not saying bad things about anyone, not asking for anything in return for the things we do for others, and above all, loving people like he did.
The End.
This was on the prayer cards that were handed out at the calling hours. (Mom picked out the verse). It makes me cry. :(
In Loving Memory of
Stanley John Liddle
July 20, 1923
September 12, 2008
"Come to Me"
God saw you getting tired,
and a cure was not to be.
So he put his arms around you,
and whispered "Come to Me".
With tearful eyes we watched you,
and saw you pass away.
Although we loved you dearly,
we could not make you stay.
A golden heart stopped beating,
hard working hands at rest.
God broke our hearts to prove to us
He only takes the best.