A Year Without Liberty
When I first met Julie almost four years ago she was still living in her home town of Hinsdale, Mass. Back in the day our topics of conversation were sometimes based on her activities during the weekends, which mostly included trips down to Connecticut to visit friends and relatives. Connecticut was her second home and she enjoyed her time here quite a bit. She would often find herself wishing she lived down here because she was ready for a change of scenery and to be honest, I think she was getting a bad case of the "big fish small pond" syndrome.
One of the family's closest friends was a retired gentleman by the name of Dave Liberty. Dave was in his early 70's and lived by himself in a three story house, having never been married or having any kids. Apparently his house was the one he was born and raised in and when the chance to buy it back came later on in life he jumped all over the opportunity. He was constantly rebuilding that house or one of it's three garages, the man was a workaholic.
If ever there was a single way to describe Dave I'm pretty sure it would be damn near unanimous to say he had a heart of gold. He spent most of his waking hours finding ways to help others, or just visiting to check up and see how people were doing. Whenever Julie and her friends and family would come down for the weekend they'd almost always end up at Dave's house. He'd set up hospitality to as many that would show up and insist that you come back to visit soon.
When I first started coming down from Canada to visit Julie she had already made her move to Connecticut. Julie had mentioned her thoughts of moving south to one day to Dave, and he ended up building a brand new apartment for her on the top floor of his house and allowed her to move her home based business into the basement. You should have seen what he did to the upstairs to make sure it was ready for Julie. A large bathroom with huge counter top that featured two sinks. A brand new kitchen with all new appliances and an air conditioning unit and well, the list goes on and on. I can't remember where I heard this from but it was rumored that he spent well into the five figures to renovate the place.
Dave went out of his way to make me feel welcome and on days when Julie had to work, he had our day all planned out the night before :) I mentioned to him that I was in the woodworking industry and he took me to a few cabinet making businesses and introduced me to a few guys for future job references. He also took me on tours of the local area and explained a great deal of the history and what it was like to grow up in the area. I still remember us driving around and him constantly checking the time and saying, "It's almost noon, I guess we should head back to the house so you can have lunch with Julie". Dave realized that I wasn't down to visit for very long and wanted to make sure Julie and I had as much time to spend together as possible. I would normally suggest that him and I go out for lunch instead, which he seemed to enjoy. We would always end up at his favorite restaurant called Cassilles so he could go flirt with all the waitresses...lol. Dave used to do small repairs around the restaurant and in exchange the people working there would give him free meals, but Dave normally left the cost of the meal as a tip anyway. I remember Dave telling me that on certain days of the week he'd go to the restaurant late at night as they were closing to act like security and help them lock up for the night. He didn't like the idea of three or four ladies closing up by themselves so like clockwork, he was there whenever they closed.
Dave told me one summer day while we were driving around that he respected the way I treat Julie and that I was more than welcome to move in with her once we figured out all the immigration stuff. He suggested we stay with him so we could save up for our own place a lot sooner.
I'm sure that Julie living with Dave put the minds of Julie's family at ease as well. They knew damn well she was in good hands and in fact, Dave would call home to Hinsdale every now and then to let them know she was doing OK.
For the Christmas of 2002 Julie decided to come spend the holidays with me and my family up in Vancouver. We were very excited at the opportunity for her to finally meet my side of the family. Since Julie is uneasy with flying, especially since 9-11, she decided to take a train out west. It was a three day trip and it cost a bit more but in the end, it was a very exciting experience and most important, she felt safe. A couple days before Julie left to come see me, her and I were on the phone talking when Dave entered the office. Dave got on the phone with me to wish me a Merry Christmas and told me he was really looking forward to seeing me again. I had planned on going back with Julie and spending all of January with her in Connecticut and Dave was excited that I'd have a month to kill. He told me he had a couple small trips planned out for us and some things for us to do once Julie had to go back to work again. I laughed and wished him a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and told him I was looking forward to seeing him again as well.
Julie made it out to Vancouver just fine and we were very busy doing some last minute shopping. I remember us just sitting in my room on Christmas Eve when we got the call from back home. Apparently Dave was supposed to pick up his good friends' kids after school and he never showed up. Dave's long time friend went to the house to check on him and discovered that he had passed away.
Julie and I were shocked, and devastated. The thought of him dying alone in the house was very sad. Julie started to debate whether or not to come home early so she could attend his funeral but after a day or so it was decided for us to just stick with our original plans.
I worried about Julie quite a bit, even before this tragedy happened. I remember thinking that Dave is not in the best of health and one day Julie might find him passed away by herself. I thought about what she would be going through after witnessing that and you know.... not to sound disrespectful in anyway, I'm really glad that Julie wasn't the one to have to find him. But now I had a new worry on my hands, how was she going to live in that house by herself once I head back to Vancouver and how long could she stay living there now that the ownership is in different hands?
It was so damn hard talking with her over the phone in the months past February knowing there was nothing I could do to help from 3000 miles away, especially when all she really wanted was for me to be there.
But Julie is a survivor. She managed to live through a difficult time and continues to live with a "it will only make you stronger" type of attitude.
We both miss Dave very much, as I'm sure anybody who ever was lucky enough to meet him does as well. He was definitely one of a kind and his gentle soul will never be forgotten. I just wish I had more time to get to know him and to spend more time with him. As with all good people who pass away, he left us too soon.
I heard a quote once before, I'm not sure where from but it definitely reminds me of someone like Dave Liberty when it crosses my mind every now and then.
"He never hurt us, until he left us"
God Bless you Dave, I can't believe you've been gone for a year already. You may be gone in person, but you'll never be forgotten in our hearts.
Thanks for everything.
One of the family's closest friends was a retired gentleman by the name of Dave Liberty. Dave was in his early 70's and lived by himself in a three story house, having never been married or having any kids. Apparently his house was the one he was born and raised in and when the chance to buy it back came later on in life he jumped all over the opportunity. He was constantly rebuilding that house or one of it's three garages, the man was a workaholic.
If ever there was a single way to describe Dave I'm pretty sure it would be damn near unanimous to say he had a heart of gold. He spent most of his waking hours finding ways to help others, or just visiting to check up and see how people were doing. Whenever Julie and her friends and family would come down for the weekend they'd almost always end up at Dave's house. He'd set up hospitality to as many that would show up and insist that you come back to visit soon.
When I first started coming down from Canada to visit Julie she had already made her move to Connecticut. Julie had mentioned her thoughts of moving south to one day to Dave, and he ended up building a brand new apartment for her on the top floor of his house and allowed her to move her home based business into the basement. You should have seen what he did to the upstairs to make sure it was ready for Julie. A large bathroom with huge counter top that featured two sinks. A brand new kitchen with all new appliances and an air conditioning unit and well, the list goes on and on. I can't remember where I heard this from but it was rumored that he spent well into the five figures to renovate the place.
Dave went out of his way to make me feel welcome and on days when Julie had to work, he had our day all planned out the night before :) I mentioned to him that I was in the woodworking industry and he took me to a few cabinet making businesses and introduced me to a few guys for future job references. He also took me on tours of the local area and explained a great deal of the history and what it was like to grow up in the area. I still remember us driving around and him constantly checking the time and saying, "It's almost noon, I guess we should head back to the house so you can have lunch with Julie". Dave realized that I wasn't down to visit for very long and wanted to make sure Julie and I had as much time to spend together as possible. I would normally suggest that him and I go out for lunch instead, which he seemed to enjoy. We would always end up at his favorite restaurant called Cassilles so he could go flirt with all the waitresses...lol. Dave used to do small repairs around the restaurant and in exchange the people working there would give him free meals, but Dave normally left the cost of the meal as a tip anyway. I remember Dave telling me that on certain days of the week he'd go to the restaurant late at night as they were closing to act like security and help them lock up for the night. He didn't like the idea of three or four ladies closing up by themselves so like clockwork, he was there whenever they closed.
Dave told me one summer day while we were driving around that he respected the way I treat Julie and that I was more than welcome to move in with her once we figured out all the immigration stuff. He suggested we stay with him so we could save up for our own place a lot sooner.
I'm sure that Julie living with Dave put the minds of Julie's family at ease as well. They knew damn well she was in good hands and in fact, Dave would call home to Hinsdale every now and then to let them know she was doing OK.
For the Christmas of 2002 Julie decided to come spend the holidays with me and my family up in Vancouver. We were very excited at the opportunity for her to finally meet my side of the family. Since Julie is uneasy with flying, especially since 9-11, she decided to take a train out west. It was a three day trip and it cost a bit more but in the end, it was a very exciting experience and most important, she felt safe. A couple days before Julie left to come see me, her and I were on the phone talking when Dave entered the office. Dave got on the phone with me to wish me a Merry Christmas and told me he was really looking forward to seeing me again. I had planned on going back with Julie and spending all of January with her in Connecticut and Dave was excited that I'd have a month to kill. He told me he had a couple small trips planned out for us and some things for us to do once Julie had to go back to work again. I laughed and wished him a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and told him I was looking forward to seeing him again as well.
Julie made it out to Vancouver just fine and we were very busy doing some last minute shopping. I remember us just sitting in my room on Christmas Eve when we got the call from back home. Apparently Dave was supposed to pick up his good friends' kids after school and he never showed up. Dave's long time friend went to the house to check on him and discovered that he had passed away.
Julie and I were shocked, and devastated. The thought of him dying alone in the house was very sad. Julie started to debate whether or not to come home early so she could attend his funeral but after a day or so it was decided for us to just stick with our original plans.
I worried about Julie quite a bit, even before this tragedy happened. I remember thinking that Dave is not in the best of health and one day Julie might find him passed away by herself. I thought about what she would be going through after witnessing that and you know.... not to sound disrespectful in anyway, I'm really glad that Julie wasn't the one to have to find him. But now I had a new worry on my hands, how was she going to live in that house by herself once I head back to Vancouver and how long could she stay living there now that the ownership is in different hands?
It was so damn hard talking with her over the phone in the months past February knowing there was nothing I could do to help from 3000 miles away, especially when all she really wanted was for me to be there.
But Julie is a survivor. She managed to live through a difficult time and continues to live with a "it will only make you stronger" type of attitude.
We both miss Dave very much, as I'm sure anybody who ever was lucky enough to meet him does as well. He was definitely one of a kind and his gentle soul will never be forgotten. I just wish I had more time to get to know him and to spend more time with him. As with all good people who pass away, he left us too soon.
I heard a quote once before, I'm not sure where from but it definitely reminds me of someone like Dave Liberty when it crosses my mind every now and then.
"He never hurt us, until he left us"
God Bless you Dave, I can't believe you've been gone for a year already. You may be gone in person, but you'll never be forgotten in our hearts.
Thanks for everything.
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