Tribute for Grandpa....

Below is the tribute on which my siblings and cousins and I collaborated and I delivered at Grandpa Seawel's funeral today, Christmas Eve 2007. I've posted it here at the request of the family.
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You have been known by many with many endearing names: Son, Brother, Uncle and Dad. But there are 12 of us (7 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren) with the high privilege of calling you by what we hope is one of your favorite names....Grandpa. And you bore the name as well as any grandpa ever could. Now today, we your grandchildren want to say Thank You.

Thank you, Grandpa, for the long walks in the woods down to the creek behind your house.

Thank you for dragging the mattress out to your deck so we could watch for shooting stars and sleep outside together.

Thank you for piling us into the king cab of your little blue Datsun truck and driving us over for swims and shell collecting in the creek at the end of BB Highway.

Thank you for not growing impatient with Carrie and me all those times we had the rumba drumbeat going on Grandma's organ a bit too loudly and probably 20 minutes too long.

Thank you for setting up the satellite television so we could watch Disney Channel cartoons in your living room on Saturday mornings.

Thank you for taking us on John Deere rides around your yard and pushing us in the big swings outside your house.

Thank you for letting Sarah nickname you Crap-paw when she was two years old. We all still get a big kick out of that...

Thank you for the numerous pancake breakfasts with your specialty maple syrup and for the wonderful food from your garden including chestnuts, cherries, blackberries and pears and your homemade peanut brittle that showed up every year at Christmastime.

Thank you for loving and caring for Grandma, especially when she was sick. Your example of love and commitment to her is a testament to your character and faithfulness to us all.

Thank you for just loving us all so much.

But mostly, Grandpa, thank you for choosing faith in Jesus - because in that one choice, you opened the door for your children, grandchildren and now great-grandchildren to the most treasured inheritance of all and that is life eternal in Heaven.


How fitting that you should go at the time we celebrate the birth of our Lord. And rather than choosing to mark the Christmas season with sadness each year, we will now celebrate with even greater joy because it was the birth of our Savior, his death and resurrection that give us the hope and promise in knowing we will all be together again one day.

Please tell Grandma that we love her and miss her. And tell Uncle Stan and Uncle Jimmy that your grandkids can't wait to meet them.

And now, since we are surrounded by our own personal great cloud of witnesses, including you and Grandma who have been heroes to us in the faith, we your grandchildren will run with perseverance the races marked out for each of us knowing that you are watching, cheering us on in our faith. (Hebrews 12:1)

Grandpa, save a place for us at the Wedding Supper of the Lamb. And, if possible, please put in a special request for pancakes. We'll miss you, remember you with much love and we will see you soon.

Love,
Christie, Carrie, Dan, Sarah, Brandon, Jessi and Taylor
Emmaleigh, Carson, Avery, Richie and Ailee