There is a song by LoneStar called "I'm Already There". A man goes on a business trip and calls to check in at home. It goes like this:

A little voice came on the phone And said "Daddy when you coming home" He said the first thing that came to his mind I'm already there Take a look around I'm the sunshine in your hair I'm the shadow on the ground I'm the whisper in the wind I'm your imaginary friend And I know… I'm in your prayers I'm already there Don't make a sound I'm the beat in your heart I'm the moonlight shining down I'm the whisper in the wind And I'll be there 'til the end Can you feel...the love that we share Oh, I'm already there

Although dad had to leave to be with God in Heaven, he is still with us and will continue to be. Just like the song says, dad is the beat in our hearts. Jennifer, Nicole, Mellissa, Nick and I all have his eyes and see the world as he did. Even though dad was over 6 feet tall and I'm only 5'5", we had the exact same leg length, yes that sure helps in karate class. Dad and I had the exact same IQ and desire to needlessly complicate math and logic problems. Jennifer has his racing spirit and bravery to get to the finish line first. I have his complete lack of sense of direction, thanks for that one dad! Dad will continue to be the beat in our hearts throughout our time here on earth.

My best friend from high school lost a child a few hours after birth and I remember that at his funeral, my friend told how sad they were that they would never know their son's favorite ice cream. My father's favorite ice cream was Chocolate Chip. I'm thankful that my father was here for 69 years. I'm so very thankful for our time together. I'm thankful for all that he taught me. I'm thankful that I had such an incredible man to look up to.

When we received the letter stating that our son, Nick, had been accepted into Bellarmine College Preparatory School, my first thought was how very excited my dad would be. Unfortunately this was about one week after his surgery and dad was in a coma. I still told dad the good news every single day, but we missed out on seeing his reaction and those beautiful blue eyes sparkle with excitement. Thankfully I get to see those beautiful eyes every time I look into the eyes of his grandchildren.

I never caught the racing bug like my dad, my sister and Rich. I'm the odd one out, maybe that explains the pink hair. My dad sure tried to get me into car racing though. He took me out and insisted that I do my first auto-cross, unfortunately for dad, it was also my last. I had a really hard time with my family racing. REALLY hard. Maybe it had something to do with the time that Rich and I were working the track at Sears Point Raceway and Rich gave me a time watch and said that at this specific point, I would see my dad come around the track. He didn't come. Next thing we are being told over the ear speakers that we need to raise the hazard flag to stop the cars. I knew instantly it was my dad. Something went wrong in Turn 10. Dad had been in a VERY bad crash. Now here's the thing about my dad...They wanted to rush him off to the hospital and dad REFUSED saying that his daughter HAD to see him before she saw the car. Even with this horrific crash, he only thought of others. I rushed out of the working booth at the track and found the most amazing sight. There was my father walking toward me with his race car behind him and the entire left side of the vehicle was now on the right side. It's no wonder that I never liked racing! That was the last of my dad's races that I ever attended.

I gave him a taste of his own medicine though.Instead of racing cars, I compete in 200 and 300-mile bike races. In my first big event, the bag on my handlebar broke going into my front tire and I was flung over the top of the handlebars. Dad loved hearing about my events, but I think he understood at that point why it was difficult for me to watch him or my sister race. Luckily he had Jennifer by his side soaking up every aspect of car racing and enjoying that special bond with him.

Nick lovingly referred to my dad as "White Papa" when he was younger. Dad was the one who started the whole video game craze in my son. When Nick was only two years old, he played Commander Keen on Grampa's computer all the time. At three years old, White Papa bought Nick his first video game system, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. They had a special bond and Grampa would come pick him up on special summer days and take him for a Grampa bonding day. Dad was a very giving man with an incredible loving heart.

My dad and I spoke almost every single day. I usually called him on my way home from karate class, especially if it was a good day and I felt strong sparring against Sensei James. I would share my excitement and my father would tell me that he was proud of me, always forever proud, and then quickly remind me that Sensei could take me out with one blow at any time. Dad kept me grounded. When dad got really sick from the Chemotherapy, we spent most of our days together at his house. Whenever he heard the beep that Charlene's mom had opened her door, he would jump up and go open the door for her. When he got too sick to do that, he would employ me to run to the door with an urgency in his voice. He was a true gentleman through and through.

If there was anyone I would say was most like my dad, it would be dad's very first grandchild, Mellissa. They are one in the same in so many ways. Mellissa has his strength and courage, but mostly she has his heart. While I have tried to keep a bubble around me this week to keep from falling apart, she has remained loving, giving and fully open-hearted. Just like my dad always did, she was there for everyone. She stayed up til the wee hours of the night making yellow ribbon Cancer cookies last night in my dad's honor. While I worked on pictures and sentiments, she baked about 100 cookies. I'm thankful that my dad was a constant part of our lives and upbringing and I'm blessed that my children are so like him.

You might ask yourself, what is the legacy you leave behind? My father taught us with a loving heart, he lived by a very strong work ethic. He was always honest in everything he did. He cared for others. His battle with Cancer taught us what courage truly is. Dad taught us to stand up for what we believe in and to go after what we wanted to achieve in life. Dad appreciated that life's joy was in the journey and the people he met, not the destination. Dad's open arms were a constant security for all of us. While most will remember his quick wit and constant jokes, I will forever miss the comfort of his loving arms hugging me and keeping me safe. Dave will have big shoes to fill taking over this job now that dad is gone, but I know that Fred and Bill will do everything in their power to help fill that empty spot in my heart from dad's passing.

I miss my dad. I miss our daily phone conversations. I miss how I could always melt into his arms. I miss being daddy’s little girl. While I'm horribly sad and broken that dad is gone, I feel blessed that God chose this man to be my Dad and I have been honored to be his daughter.

"II Timothy 4:7 - I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."