In Memory Of Ronald J. Bell

November 7, 1944 - May 23, 2004



Obituary

A year ago today my father passed away. This is what I wrote in my journal last year and read at his memorial:

My dad was one of the my best's friends. He was always there for me, treating me with respect, patience, and love. I wasn't always easy to get along with, as my mom and brother will surely attest, especially during my teens and early 20's, but my dad was always there for me and I knew I could turn to him when I needed support no matter what kind of support I needed.

My dad loved to cook and some of my fondest memories of him are in the kitchen or at the grill. He got better at it over the years and could prepare wonderful meals although we might not have guessed it as children when we had his famous "hockey pucks", the biggest and driest hamburgers you ever had. He was so proud of those burgers. I didn't know as a child how truly awful they were!!! He took it well when we joked about it later in life and he had expanded his cooking repertoire.

My dad really loved computers. One of the other early memories I had, besides those "great" burgers, was going to work with him when he was on call working as a computer programmer or operator in the early 70's. Here where these huge computers that my dad was in charge of. He put me in front of an 80-column card punch machine to play with and the transfer of his love of computers was passed on to me.

I am so happy to have had the opportunity to share our love of computers together over all these years. We worked together a couple of times. He could be a demanding boss but also understanding and patient.

I will miss my dad. He was so young, to young to be gone. But I'll always remember his laugh and his smile and his never ending optimism. He was my father and my best friend.

I LOVE YOU DAD!!