Walter's Eulogy
I never put this on here... plus I didn't tell the story of that day last summer yet... well here's one part...
"What can I say about Walter?… The question should actually be restated as, what CAN’T I say about Walter. If you were to list all the positive adjectives in the English dictionary, about 95% of them would apply to him. He had the heart the size of Texas, and faith that could move mountains. There are very few people in the world who make significant impacts on those around him. Walter was one of those few.
I can’t remember the first day I met him, nor the first words we spoke to each other. However, in only a few years, he became a good mentor, friend, and practically an older brother to me. He sometimes used to kid with me that he felt like a second father to me because he was always dispensing advice.
Funny enough, he was a father… Not necessarily to me, but to everyone. Some say he had 3 kids. I, on the other hand, say he had more. Many more. He always took care of somebody… If it wasn’t his younger brother and sister, it was his cousin Robby and his other cousins during their family trip to Maine, it was Amanda, Anthony, and Victoria or it was his CCD children. It seemed Walter felt that it was his duty, and his privilege to be a guardian… to be a father figure.
We all know Walter enjoyed teaching religious instruction to about 10-15 students every year. His dedication to sharing his knowledge and wisdom to 11 and 12 year olds for the past 20 years has been remarkable. I always heard rumors from the getgo that the influence he had on his students was extraordinary. The year before, there was a terrible tragedy among the 7th graders. A friend of theirs passed away. Various questions such as why would God allow such a thing were asked. Walter’s responses not only calmed them down, but kind of gave them a light at the end of the tunnel feeling.
Now don’t’ get me wrong… he never did answer that question, why??… That question absolutely applies here… and there is no logical rhyme or reason to God’s actions. Much like Father said last night at the wake, nobody can assume to know or understand the events that have taken place. We’re only human. The only thing is to go forward. It is what Walter would have wanted.
In the time I have known him, we would always joke around about how he was the philosopher and I was the scientist. He loved the humanities while I loved phyiscs and math. He would always tell me that no matter what intellectual path you lead, it always resorts back to a branch of philosophy. Then I would always respond back with some witty, silly comment to try and disprove him, and then I would cut him off by saying “I win”… This was because I was too stubborn to admit he was right… and he knew it. Due to our contrasting views about so many things, I said to him once, “It’s amazing how we’re friends”… he then told me a saying in French. It roughly translates as, "I do my thing, & you do your thing. I am not in this world to live up to your expectations, and you are not in this world to live up to mine. You are you and I am I, and if buy chance we find each other - it is beautiful. If not it can't be helped."
Now the next step is to keep him in our hearts. He will always be with us now. I believe he is immortalized in our hearts and minds. As Walter’s mother said to Victoria the other day, “he’s our guardian angel now”. And he will guide us. He will always be there for us. That little voice inside telling you to spend time with the children, to quit smoking, to do well in school, or to be respectful of one another, to stick together and always be there for each other, in all the good times and in the bad… that’s Walter speaking. And I know it is him speaking to us because it is what he would have wanted. He loved each and every one of us in so many ways. And we of course love him back.
Nevertheless, he will be sorely missed. I am proud to consider him my older brother, my friend, and my mentor. Even though I never admitted it to him, he knew that I knew that he won. He always won."
"What can I say about Walter?… The question should actually be restated as, what CAN’T I say about Walter. If you were to list all the positive adjectives in the English dictionary, about 95% of them would apply to him. He had the heart the size of Texas, and faith that could move mountains. There are very few people in the world who make significant impacts on those around him. Walter was one of those few.
I can’t remember the first day I met him, nor the first words we spoke to each other. However, in only a few years, he became a good mentor, friend, and practically an older brother to me. He sometimes used to kid with me that he felt like a second father to me because he was always dispensing advice.
Funny enough, he was a father… Not necessarily to me, but to everyone. Some say he had 3 kids. I, on the other hand, say he had more. Many more. He always took care of somebody… If it wasn’t his younger brother and sister, it was his cousin Robby and his other cousins during their family trip to Maine, it was Amanda, Anthony, and Victoria or it was his CCD children. It seemed Walter felt that it was his duty, and his privilege to be a guardian… to be a father figure.
We all know Walter enjoyed teaching religious instruction to about 10-15 students every year. His dedication to sharing his knowledge and wisdom to 11 and 12 year olds for the past 20 years has been remarkable. I always heard rumors from the getgo that the influence he had on his students was extraordinary. The year before, there was a terrible tragedy among the 7th graders. A friend of theirs passed away. Various questions such as why would God allow such a thing were asked. Walter’s responses not only calmed them down, but kind of gave them a light at the end of the tunnel feeling.
Now don’t’ get me wrong… he never did answer that question, why??… That question absolutely applies here… and there is no logical rhyme or reason to God’s actions. Much like Father said last night at the wake, nobody can assume to know or understand the events that have taken place. We’re only human. The only thing is to go forward. It is what Walter would have wanted.
In the time I have known him, we would always joke around about how he was the philosopher and I was the scientist. He loved the humanities while I loved phyiscs and math. He would always tell me that no matter what intellectual path you lead, it always resorts back to a branch of philosophy. Then I would always respond back with some witty, silly comment to try and disprove him, and then I would cut him off by saying “I win”… This was because I was too stubborn to admit he was right… and he knew it. Due to our contrasting views about so many things, I said to him once, “It’s amazing how we’re friends”… he then told me a saying in French. It roughly translates as, "I do my thing, & you do your thing. I am not in this world to live up to your expectations, and you are not in this world to live up to mine. You are you and I am I, and if buy chance we find each other - it is beautiful. If not it can't be helped."
Now the next step is to keep him in our hearts. He will always be with us now. I believe he is immortalized in our hearts and minds. As Walter’s mother said to Victoria the other day, “he’s our guardian angel now”. And he will guide us. He will always be there for us. That little voice inside telling you to spend time with the children, to quit smoking, to do well in school, or to be respectful of one another, to stick together and always be there for each other, in all the good times and in the bad… that’s Walter speaking. And I know it is him speaking to us because it is what he would have wanted. He loved each and every one of us in so many ways. And we of course love him back.
Nevertheless, he will be sorely missed. I am proud to consider him my older brother, my friend, and my mentor. Even though I never admitted it to him, he knew that I knew that he won. He always won."