My other father who just said, ”Call me by my name only” is called Dalton. On Monday we were told to come and see him for the last time because he was dying. I was thinking about what a huge hole in my life that will leave me. He was always such a strong presence in my life. He always made me feel that he loved and cared for me. I will miss him greatly.

I remember that we went to go see my biological dad one weekend, and my sister and I found out that my mother had married Dalton who was already a good friend over that weekend. I accepted it easily and we got along. Dalton wanted to have an authoritative role in our lives. So my sister and I had to get used to it in a hurry.

We saw how much he cared for us in many ways. He and my mom arranged to buy my first car from our neighbor. It was an adorable blue Toyota. I loved that car so much. It was easy to drive because it was easy to maneuver even without power steering. I was the first of my friends to get my own car so I drove us everywhere. Dalton made sure that I always had at least half a tank of gas at all times for my safety. He was an excellent mechanic who could keep it running.

He was the smartest man in many ways. He was a wonderful artist as well and could draw a perfect clown. He was very knowledgeable about a variety of topics. He came from very poor conditions and joked that he was so skinny that he had to run around in the shower to get wet.

I remember that my job at home was to do the dishes before I went out. He would take his last bite of his dinner very slowly while I stood there waiting for his plate anxious to leave.

When I got married, I fretted about who was going to walk me down the isle and my mom said why can’t they both? My father and Dalton both walked me down the isle. I was very glad when they caught me from falling when my shoe stepped on my dress. I felt very blessed to have such strong men behind me.

Dalton passed away on October 28^th after a struggle with infections as well as a stroke during a previous operation for throat cancer. He will be greatly missed.